<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>sit and reminisce with me by cosmicfuss</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29836287">sit and reminisce with me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmicfuss/pseuds/cosmicfuss'>cosmicfuss</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Champions Live AU, Link-centric, M/M, Post-Canon, Slow Burn, Verbal Link, canon compliant until it isn't, like... glacially, playing fast and loose with zelda lore</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 21:47:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>40,051</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29836287</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmicfuss/pseuds/cosmicfuss</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>What is a hero meant to do once he's slayed his foe, and his divine purpose has been met? What can he do when he's done everything asked of him, with no more great task to move towards? When his mind is still blank, and all he knows is a ravaged land? </p><p>Link figures it out, eventually. Picks up the pieces, and sorts through his forgotten past.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Link/Revali (Legend of Zelda)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>101</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The bodily strain of fishing and hauling nets was, all things considered, nice. The ropeburn on his palms, the ache in his lower back from hoisting nets from the water. The smell he could have gone without, but <em> goddess</em>, the <em> taste </em> of these fish was heavenly. He could go the rest of his life smelling like fish guts and be happy, as long as at the end of every day he could sit down and eat <em> this </em> for dinner. </p><p>The cooking pot was hot, stew bubbling, and Sebasto was watching the fish at the fire like a hawk. The only time Link had ever seen him char a meal was when he'd been distracted by his wife's flirting- an ongoing war between them, one Kiana won more often than not. Still, only five moderately-burnt meals in two months was leaps and bounds better than Link's own track record. </p><p>Truthfully, he had been terrible at cooking fish. His first few, sad attempts as he travelled south had been terrible. Bland, chewy, unseasoned. Just plain fish over a fire, paired with mushy fruit if he was lucky. In his defense, meal quality hadn't been among his top concerns. </p><p>"You doing good there?" Kiana's voice was always warm when it needed to be, always guided Link out of his thoughts. He gave her a small smile and a nod in reply, mouth still full of stew, and turned his eyes to Kinov and Zuta. They were arguing about which was easier to catch: a razorback crab or mighty carp. </p><p>Personally, Link thought it was the carp. Even in nets, the wriggled like mad, and were so slimy that he'd dropped a few on the deck of Mubs' boat. She hadn't been quick to ask him for help again, and when he did go now it was mostly to hoist, not detangle. </p><p>The two boys were impassioned about their argument, which slowly morphed into which was more fun: seashell collecting or puddle jumping. Kinov made a pretty good argument with <em> you can keep the shells, and they're really pretty</em>. Zuta's counter was <em> not if there's still somethin' living in 'em! </em> </p><p>Good points from both sides. </p><p>It was always nice when Link sat to eat with the family. They'd been among the first to welcome Link into the village, and had taught him almost everything he knew now about living on the coast. Which wasn't to say that the other's <em> weren't </em> welcoming, but it had been Sebasto to sit him down and teach him to season a fish. It had been Zuta to come up to Link, face still stony and eyes red from sleepless nights, and tug his hand to join him in the rain. </p><p>From the first week that Link had wandered into Lurelin Village, he'd become a fixture at their cooking pot nearly every night. When Flavi had still been camping out by some palm fruit trees, he'd taken many meals with her. She had often spoken of her sister at Kara Kara Bazaar, a brilliant but tired bowyer who sold her arrows at the front of the inn. </p><p>Since her departure though, Link had come to spend most of his evenings with the family of four. He liked their laughter, and they never pressed him to join in, though he sometimes did. Some evenings, though, were spent with others. Rozel and Numar, Chessica and Mubs, Armes. </p><p>It was nice. Peaceful. </p><p>At night, he either went to his and Flavi's old shared campsite or to Chessica's inn. He enjoyed the feeling of an actual bed under him, but he wasn't rolling in rupees. His old bedroll worked just as well, and he could always station himself under one of the umbrellas around the village if it rained. </p><p>Another advantage to sleeping outside was that if Link woke up with clenched teeth, a dagger for gutting fish swinging, well. No one was around to see that. </p><p>He shut his eyes and tried to focus on the swell of the sea, the fluttering wings of those beetles that Beedle loved so much. Maybe he'd catch a few, take a couple days to walk to Lakeside Stable to bring them to him. He bit the inside of his cheek and willed away the afterimages of his nightmare, tried to summon the strange merchant's excitement instead. </p><p><em> Link, please- </em> </p><p>He shot up, eyes wide, pulse frantic. Dropped the dagger into the sand next to him and shoved his palms into his eyes until he saw colors swirl. </p><p>"Not there," he whispered, coarse. He blinked up at the stars as if they would shed wisdom for him. A beetle flew away. Link repeated the words like a mantra, desperate to believe it. </p><p> </p><p>Signs common in Lurelin were similar to those that Link knew. His hands knew the right shapes to make, knew the meaning behind them. Lurelin Village's signs were mostly the same, though felt <em> bigger</em>. Meant to communicate from separate boats and not scare the fish, maybe. </p><p>Rozel was the one who taught Link much of them, since when he was fishing on the water it was always in Mubs' boat and they could speak without yelling. Along with signs, Rozel told Link much of their little village's history, their old legends. Usually, it was fascinating. Sometimes, it tugged a frayed string in his mind. </p><p>"Meticulously carved into the lands, the dragon flies onwards. At its mouth is a sacred shrine, said to be older than legend." </p><p><em> Standing guard, low murmuring behind him. Zelda is frustrated. With the goddess, with herself. Link, silent, knuckles white on the master sword, who is frustratingly silent. Is this how others feel? How Zelda feels, when she rants and rages and receives no response? From Link, from Hylia? </em> </p><p>Rozel was still talking, half of the words making it to Link. His head felt light, stuffed up with wool. He'd been to this ancient spring at some point. </p><p>"What is the spring?" Rozel blinked, unused to an interruption coming from Link of all people. Still, he grinned wide and answered. </p><p>"Well, it has gone by many names throughout legend, though it has been the Spring of Courage for just as long. Are you thinking of travelling there? You should know first, though the many trials of old are gone, the area has been overtaken by monsters." </p><p>Link hummed, contemplative. It could be a good idea. </p><p>It could also be a terrible idea. </p><p>"I'll think about it." </p><p>"You do that! Now, would you like to hear about an old treasure? Ha! Well, they say," Link listened attentively to the riddle about the golden triangle. The name tugged at another fraying thread, but Link shoved it aside to focus on the riddle. </p><p>It took almost three days of searching the sea around Lurelin, but Link did find the chests. He got a few gems and a thunderblade out of it though, which Link felt made it worth the endeavor. Chessica shook her head at him and gave him a soft bed for the price of a regular, and muttered that he looked like a stick of salted jerky that had been fished out of the water. </p><p>He didn't dream, at least. </p><p>In the morning, she still gave him grilled fish and fresh fruit for breakfast free of charge. Mubs didn't even poke bruises into his ribs with her pointy elbows while they ate, which was more telling than anything probably. </p><p>"You need anything today, just swing right by the docks okay?" Oh, goddess, she was even using <em> that </em> tone. </p><p>"Thanks," he told her, and shot Chessica a look that begged her to change the conversation. She did, happy to tell Link all about the lowering costs of importing woolen sheets. </p><p>Since Calamity's end three months before, the people of Hyrule had tentatively taken to the roads. The stable network had already been in decent usage, from what Link had seen and heard during his travels south. He'd mostly met travelling merchants who sold small goods like arrows and fruits. Now, it seemed some were more willing to move bigger goods. </p><p>Not that Lurelin got much foot traffic. In most cases, if someone appeared in Lurelin then they had sought out the small village. Link hadn't, too focused on <em> go faster, go farther</em>, but in <em> most </em> cases they knew where they were heading. The only person other than himself and Flavi that he'd seen come to the village was Chumin, a wandering merchant that sold preserved fish, hearty blueshell snails, bright-eyed crabs, and fruit. </p><p>The villagers in Lurelin still got by well enough without traveling merchants or visitors. The only apparent impact that the last hundred years of Calamity seemed to have had on the village was the increased numbers of lizalfos and stal monsters along the beach. Rozel, the eldest of everyone in the village, could even remember a peaceful, quiet childhood at the start of it all. </p><p>Sometimes, he told Link of it over shared dinners. Numar, who had likely heard every life event from his grandfather several times over, often added in details. Of everyone in the village, it was often Rozel who tugged at the gaps of Link's memories. </p><p>More often than not, they were short moments, a quick thought, a remembered taste or feeling. Flitting things, innocuous tethers to who Link may have once been. Only one memory had been so vivid, and Link was coming to a conclusion about it. </p><p>He sat at the shore, waves lapping over him up to the waist. His pants were utterly soaked, but the nights in Lurelin were warm enough that it didn't matter if he just shucked them onto a rock by his campfire. Still, if he wanted to get everything packed so he could leave in the morning it likely wasn't the best idea. </p><p>"Something bothering ya?" Link turned to face Numar, who saw something on Link's face as invitation to sit. It was true enough, Link liked the man's company. </p><p>"I'm leaving tomorrow," Link told him, for lack of something better. Ever since coming to Lurelin, he'd been speaking more openly, more freely. On the Great Plateau, and with Zelda on their trip to Kakariko, Link's throat had felt like there was a stone sitting in it. There had been a weight of duty so physical it stifled him, but the people here had lifted it. The stone had smoothed under the repetitive lull of the waves. </p><p>"Really? Can't say I didn't see it comin' but still. We'll miss ya here." </p><p>"I'll miss everyone here too." And goddess, wasn't <em> that </em>the truth. "It's only been a few months, but I'll miss it." Numar laughed, short but light. </p><p>"Hyrule's a big place, ya know? I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for somewhere out there," Numar said, always oddly wise for his age. Maybe it had something to do with being raised by Rozel, who was one of the few others that Link knew of that could see the spirit dragons. Or, at least Farosh. </p><p>"You ever get tired of all that adventure, you're always welcome back here. Hope ya remember that, Link," Numar added, and Link offered a small smile. It was a nice thought; having somewhere to return to. Other than the claustrophobic shrine he'd woken in and a ruined castle he may have lived at once, Link didn't have a place like that. </p><p>He did now, though. Lurelin Village, a safe haven bubbled off from the rest of Hyrule. A little campfire and a bed at Chessica's inn, a spot at Sebasto and Kiana's cooking pot. </p><p>"I'll remember." </p><p>Of all the things Link has forgotten, he won't forget this. </p><p> </p><p>With a pack full of Kiana's food, pressed into his hands at dawn, and a blank journal gifted to him from Rozel, and a nice seashell and snail shell from Kinov and Zuta, Link's journey was decently light. Most of his belongings were put in the sheikah slate anyway, so he really only needed to carry that and a few weapons on his back. </p><p>The snail and seashell he kept in a small satchel at his waist, closed tight so they wouldn't fall out. </p><p>There wasn't much to see on the roads, really. Most of the monsters kept away from the path, no longer under the control of Ganon and his malice. Chumin had told him as much, but it was still a nice reprieve. When he'd come south from Kakariko, the monsters had still been recovering as Ganon's grip on them released. They'd been wild and feral, attacking each other as much as him. </p><p>Now, the lizalfos seemed largely happy to stay away from him, except for a couple every so often that seemed more desperate than angry. It was odd, his fingers flexing at every rustle of leaves near him, but nice. To walk the path, still in an area too isolated to pass travelers. The dirt was smooth, no fresh hoof prints of a horse or donkey. </p><p>And he was fairly certain he'd be able to tell, given how rainy the area was. If he'd thought that Lurelin had bad rain, he was unprepared to describe the Faron jungles. The region's one blessing was the plentiful fish and mighty bananas. If not for that, Link might've starved. Kiana's parting gift had only stretched so far, gone as he stopped to snack at Floria Bridge. </p><p>Well, perhaps the region had two blessings. </p><p>The life around him was vibrant, the old ruins feeling a part of the nature they sat in. It didn't feel deeply familiar to him, both a relief and a source of discomfort. He'd only left Lurelin to pursue that nagging emptiness in his mind, the little threads that pulled and pulled but never fully unraveled. What if he remembered nothing else? Where would he go? </p><p>There was always Zelda, likely working to rebuild her kingdom. She would be able to point him in the right direction, probably. Out of everyone alive, she was possibly the only one who could do so. </p><p>Still, Link only needed to remember the expressions on her face when she'd looked at him. He didn't want to go through it again, didn't want to see old feelings and new frustrations and endless disappointment. It was enough to catch sight of himself in passing on the water's surface, he didn't need her guilt too. </p><p>The jungles in Faron proved enough of a distraction as he made his way to the Spring of Courage. He only vaguely knew where to go, and wasn't sure if he should feel hopeful when he caught sight of the Lakeside Stable. </p><p>It was a nice place, tucked away right to the side of the path. A signpost pointed down where Link came towards Lurelin, though it seemed that none of those at the stable were headed that way. Other than Beedle, the few other hylians seemed to be the keepers of the stable that lived there. </p><p>Link gave Beedle a few of the beetles he had in exchange for some food and an elixir. Decent enough quality for a wandering merchant, though would only last but an hour or so. It didn't smell rancid, which was good enough for Link. He thanked Beedle and bought half his stock of arrows. He left shortly after, though to <em> where </em> Link wasn't sure. The next stable, probably. </p><p>"Hey, buddy," one of the elderly men called him over. "You got a map on you?" </p><p>Link nodded, curious. </p><p>"You see Dueling Peaks on it? Old legends say that a dragon god split the mountain in half, and that's how it went from one to two. Recently, some are even saying they've seen the shadow of a large creature on the surface of Lake Floria! I wonder if any of it is true. Ah, where'd my manners go? I'm Shay, one of the keepers of this stable." </p><p>"Link." </p><p>Shay laughed and shook his head, amusement dancing in old eyes. He told Link that he could talk to his brother in the stable if he wanted to buy a room for the night, and was free to use the cooking pot regardless. Link thanked him, mind still stuck on the old man's legend. </p><p>Rozel had said something similar. About Lake Floria and an old dragon deity, not the Dueling Peaks. He glanced back down the path towards the lake he'd just crossed. Well, it was close, and he was curious. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Damn curiosity and damn old men and their intriguing stories.  </em>
</p><p>Link trudged back down the path in the middle of the night, the skin of his palms still buzzing from the strange glowing scale. The glowing dragon had been <em> magnificent</em>, and <em> terrifying</em>. How was Link to know it was harmless? He'd seen a dragon rise from the surface of Lake Floria, so of course he'd shot the creature. </p><p>It hadn't even looked at him, simply kept rising from seemingly endless depths. Its scale had fallen to the water like a shooting star, emanating a strange light. Whatever the dragon was, it was content to ignore Link. It rose higher and flew over the waterfall, disappearing into the night. </p><p>He only realized as its tail flitted from view that it had been <em> Farosh</em>. The legendary dragon Farosh, the dragon deity Farosh. And Link had just <em> shot it</em>. </p><p>Its scale still glowed, bobbing on the surface in the middle of the lake. Link didn't even bother shucking off his shoes, just jumped into the water and was distantly glad that the sheikah slate was waterproof. The swim couldn't have been that long, but it felt like an age before he reached the scale. </p><p>He put it in his slate as quickly as he could, but his palms felt the power that resided in it. He couldn't imagine what it would feel like getting close to the dragon, not that he would dare. Link was fairly certain he'd seen actual lightning crackling around Farosh, and given what he knew from Rozel he didn't doubt it. </p><p>The night air was muggy in the jungle, made worse by wet clothes. He stripped his shirt off and set it on one of the old ruins by the stable. His boots would hopefully be dry by morning as long as he kept them by the cooking pot's fire. He didn't go into the stable's inn, though it might've been nice. </p><p>He barely had a hundred rupees, and wanted to keep them for when he might actually need something. </p><p>Link did not sleep <em> well</em>, but at least he slept. He was just glad it didn't start raining until he was dressed in the morning. Shay gave him a mushroom and fruit skewer and a pitying look before he left, which was nice. He could've gone without the latter though. </p><p>Rozel hadn't been very specific about the whereabouts of the sacred spring, and the sheikah slate's map was largely incomplete. He'd gone to a few of the shrines he'd passed by, never one to pass up a challenge or ignore curiosity, but he'd left all of the towers alone. The shrines were small and often tucked away enough that he knew they'd go largely ignored, but the towers were different. Tall, visible for leagues. </p><p>Best to leave them be. If he needed a map, he'd try to find a cartographer or ask for directions. Not that he could just <em> ask </em> where an ancient, sacred spring was. </p><p>When he saw massive ancient structures, taken over by bokoblins, he figured they were a good a guide as any. He bypassed the bokoblins, easy enough in the rain, and went north. A few of the landmarks could have been ones referenced in some of Rozel's legends, if they were less destroyed. </p><p>Eventually, he came across a lizalfos nest and a massive dragon's head. Its claws came up on the cliff's edge as though it would continue to climb over, like Farosh flying over the Floria Falls. Link stuck to the clifftops, quiet so he didn't have to battle a hoard of lizalfos and a black moblin all at once. He'd prefer not to fight <em> any </em> of them. </p><p>The moblin, blessedly, was asleep. None of the monsters saw him as he walked along the edge of and ancient wall, paragliding down to the goddess statue in the mouth of the dragon. Old, ruined pillars rose from the water, only a couple of them somewhat whole. </p><p>He walked to the statue, a holy light shining over it though there was little opening for the sun. </p><p><em> You have done well to find this spring</em>. </p><p>Link gasped, the feeling so familiar it made Link's skin raise. She sounded so similar to Zelda, but was more whole. Her voice was a solid weight in his mind, where Zelda's had once been airy, a breeze barely caught. </p><p><em> Offer Farosh's scale, received from the golden spirit, to the Spring of Courage. I, Goddess Hylia, will guide you</em>. </p><p>A heat crept up Link's face, and he wondered if this was mockery. He pulled the scale from his slate and set it on the pedestal at her feet. Behind the statue, a part of the cave wall slid apart. He hadn't even noticed the strange structure there, but could see the orange glow of a shrine from the cave. He looked back up at the statue, still glowing. </p><p>"You'll guide me? The princess came to you a hundred years ago, where was your guidance?" </p><p><em> I cannot unseal powers actively repressed, my hero. You have done well on your quest, defeated the Calamity of your iteration. </em> </p><p>"I came here to remember," Link told Her, though she must have known. How could She not? </p><p><em> I cannot give what was not taken. You will find a way to remember should you truly want it, my hero. </em> </p><p>"How? Where do I go? What am I supposed to <em> do </em> now that my great task is finished? You wanted me to defeat Ganon, that's what I was raised to do and I <em> did </em> it. I don't even know if I had dreams of what to do <em> after</em>, I'm just here and I don't <em> remember</em>," Link's eyes were hot, the water around him strangely cool. </p><p>Hylia didn't have any more wisdom to offer him, apparently. She'd said Her piece, the goddess statue's glow fading. Perhaps the one thing he truly got out of the conversation was that the moblin remained asleep. Link stepped around the statue to the shrine, his chest hollow. </p><p> </p><p>There was almost nothing in Link's journal. Part of the reason was that he didn't get a quill pen until he made his way to the Highland Stable, almost two weeks after he'd departed from Lurelin. Another was that he simply didn't know what to write. </p><p>Numar had told him to pen his great adventures, and Rozel to collect legends and tales as he roamed. Kiana had suggested he write down recipes, and Sebasto had winked and nodded over her shoulder. Zuta and Kinov had told him to draw and write about all the neat fish and bugs he saw. </p><p>Instead, Link wrote Hylia's words to him a few pages into the book, then returned to the front to stare at the blank page. The Highland Stable wasn't too busy, still too far south for many to bother traveling to casually. It was a nice stable though, small trees growing along the fence, a few goats and cows. One of the stable hands, Phanna, had given him the quill. She had hesitantly asked if he'd be recording the horses he saw. </p><p>Another of the stable's workers was a woman named Suzuna, who told Link of a place to resurrect horses. Link didn't have a horse, though he'd like one, and he didn't know any horses recently deceased, and he hoped not to. But a horse deity that would resurrect horses?</p><p>Link prepared to set off in search of it for the next day. </p><p> </p><p>Link found the horse deity, but it took another two weeks and a thousand rupees before he actually <em> met </em> them. Malanya was unlike anyone or anything Link had ever seen, except perhaps the horse stables. They were playful and fun, even if they offered to eat him. He was pretty sure they were joking about that. </p><p>Pretty sure. </p><p>The next step, he supposed, was actually getting a horse. He asked Malanya if they knew of a place with well bred horses, and got laughed at as the deity disappeared into their great flower. He spent the rest of his afternoon catching the winterwing and summerwing butterflies and hot footed frogs around Malanya's flower spring. It wasn't the right climate for either, at least he didn't think so, nor the endura mushrooms that grew behind the spring. </p><p>Deities, Link had found recently, were strange indeed. </p><p> </p><p>Of all the ways to make a name for himself, Link hadn't expected it would be as a food and elixir seller, though primarily the latter. </p><p>Most of the rupees he'd made to satiate Malanya he'd gotten that way, and by selling whatever other little things he collects. Monster parts, wild herbs, mushrooms. Mostly though, it had been from high-grade elixirs and well-cooked food. He'd gotten a bed at the Highland Stable for half off because a few travelers had heard of him and had come down to buy some elixirs, mostly hasty and tough ones. </p><p>Now, all Link had to do when he passed a wandering merchant or adventurer on the road was tell them he made elixirs, yes, the ones from Highland Stable. </p><p>Approaching Lake Hylia, Link could see the cliffs of the Great Plateau. Hesti, a merchant he met on the Bridge of Hylia, told him that there was still no way to get back up there. She also bought two tough elixirs from him before they parted ways, which was always welcome. Link was starting to like this new life of being an elixir seller. </p><p>He climbed a large hill, trying to figure out which was the best direction to head to. Across Hylia River, Link saw a tree. There was nothing particularly remarkable about it, except that perhaps a korok was hidden there. It was easy to guess where some were, after he'd found his sixth sitting under an inconspicuous rock in the top branches of a tree. </p><p>This one felt similar, a tug that pulled him towards it. He eyed the distance and figured if he didn't make it, he'd just climb to the top. </p><p>Paragliding was always the same. Always fresh wind, a familiar ache in his arms, fingers slotted into well-worn wood. Always exhilarating, like coming alive all over again. There was never any specific memory that came with flying, but it was always peaceful, familiar. </p><p>He did have to climb the hillside, just a bit. There was a korok around the tree, the little rascal, but finding it didn't abate the feeling in his chest. He sat under the tree and looked out towards the bridge, the ruins of a village in the valley below. </p><p>
  <em> Rain. Zelda. Training, wet and cold but he has to continue, has to prove his worth to the sword and himself and the Goddess and Zelda.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Your path seems to mirror your father's," Zelda said. "You've dedicated yourself to becoming a knight as well. Your commitment to the training necessary to fulfill your goal is really quite admirable. I see now why you would be the chosen one."  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> There's something under her words, but Link has never been the best at deciphering things like that. He says things directly, when there's words to be said. Now, there isn't.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "What if, one day, you realized that you just weren't meant to be a fighter? Yet the only thing people ever said was that you were born into a family of the royal guard, and so no matter what you thought, you had to become a knight? If that was the only thing you were ever told, I wonder then, would you have chosen a different path?"  </em>
</p><p><em> Link doesn't know what to tell her, how to make her feel better. She's just as helpless to Goddess Hylia's will as he is, both of them born with a duty too large for any set of shoulders, no matter how blessed, how divine. </em> </p><p>Link peered out at the bridge, the memory still swirling around his mind like present. He sat in the grass and breathed, and focused instead on the bright afternoon sun. He thought of Hylia's words, penned down four pages into his journal, after his entries on Malanya and the most effective elixir recipes he knew. </p><p><em> I cannot give what was not taken</em>. </p><p>His memories existed, somewhere in his mind. It just came down to whether or not Link pursued them. He sat there until the sun shifted in the sky, not quite setting yet but nearing it. He traveled until he couldn't on the hilltops, and paraglided down towards Necluda. The Dueling Peaks were in the distance, and he thought of Shay's story about a dragon god splitting the mountain. </p><p> </p><p>Unsurprisingly, word had not gotten to those in Dueling Peaks Stable of the strange, quiet elixir seller. Dueling Peaks was a fair distance from the Highland Stable after all, and although some people had come for elixirs, word spread slowly from quiet places like that. </p><p>This time, perhaps, would actually get word around about him. The Dueling Peaks Stable was bustling with travelers, and Link could see almost a dozen people in Ash Swamp, clearing away the old guardians. Further away from the stable, more towards the forest, Link could see a few colorful box-like buildings. </p><p>"Ah, eyeing up those Bolson Construction homes, huh? Good luck getting one, I heard the construction company is up to their necks in requests for houses. Good business but busy, ey?" Link turned to face the man, who looked towards the buildings rather than Link. </p><p>"Never seen anything like 'em," the man continued, "but I heard they're a Hateno business. Quite the distance to get here, innit? Ah, the road's usually safe in the day and all, but I don't know if I'd risk transporting all that so far, ya know? Too many bandits out when it gets dark. You be careful there too." The man slapped Link on the shoulder and left towards the stable. Link blinked after him. </p><p>He hadn't met with any bandits, but he'd also just joined a busy road recently. It had been almost five months since he'd defeated Calamity, though it felt both ages longer and impossibly shorter. Years ago and yesterday. Most of that time, he'd been in the south on lesser-traveled roads. </p><p>Bandits, huh. Link made a mental note of it and turned back towards the swamp. It was mostly hylians clearing away the guardians, but Link spotted a couple gorons too. They were doing most of the heavy lifting, while hylians moved and steered large carts to transport the guardians. A few gerudo women were there too, all of them equipped with scimitars and daggers and shields. </p><p>Link felt it again, the pull of his feet towards the swamp, an echo of <em> you've been here</em>. The guardians made his stomach roil, but Link walked through them, avoiding everyone that was working as well as he could. He knew already that whatever was here to remember was nothing good. </p><p>And it wasn't. </p><p>
  <em> Zelda. A tired, aching exhaustion that cuts to his bones. They've been running for days now, and he can feel it in every swing. The guardians, an eye of malice pointed right at Zelda. She pushes him away, but it's Link duty to protect her, he has to move, has to get his feet to-  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Bright, blinding light. Gold, as pure and powerful as the Goddess Herself. He hurts, he hurts so much, everywhere. There's still gold in his vision when he looks at her, gold in his throat as hands lift him.  </em>
</p><p><em> Fi is talking, he can just barely hear her. He doesn't know where the hands will take him, but heard Fi, heard Zelda. All he can see is gold but that's alright. Zelda's powers have awoken, Fi is here, he can rest. </em> </p><p>Link looked at his hands, at his waterlogged boots and pants, at the frog that jumped near him. He wondered how it could stand to live here, in this place of death. But then, it was a frog. What did it know about death, beyond eating bugs. </p><p>Link returned to the stable and tried to pay for a bed. They were out. Of course. </p><p>He walked past the newly constructed houses and into the woods, and set up his bedroll by a campfire under thick trees. There was time still until dusk, but Link didn't feel like doing much of anything. He just wanted to rest. </p><p> </p><p>The first tower Link activated was Hateno Tower. </p><p>It had been almost six months since he'd defeated Calamity, probably. It didn't matter anymore if someone saw the shrines, if Zelda saw the shrines. He'd activated enough shrines by now that someone, somewhere was bound to see them. He looked at the map in the slate and grudgingly admitted that it was nice to have such a detailed map. </p><p>Hateno Village wasn't labeled on the map, all blank topographical data, but he could see where it likely was. </p><p>Link's first encounter with bandits was underwhelming. Four hylian men, two hylian women, likely relying on numbers to rob travelers. Link disarmed three of them almost immediate, two of the others immediately raising their hands and the last one reluctantly following. </p><p>Most of them spoke at once, <em> who are you, how did you do that, please don't hurt me</em>. Link didn't answer, only took their blades and stored what he could in the slate. The last dagger and rusty sword he strapped to himself, and left them there. </p><p>There wasn't exactly a royal guard to contact nowadays, and most of the six seemed too spooked to try thievery again. </p><p>Hateno Village was peaceful when he arrived, most of the buildings old enough to have existed before the Calamity. The people were friendly and welcoming, excited by visiting travelers. Hateno wasn't quite as out-of-the-way as Lurelin was, but it certainly wasn't a hotspot for travel. Link did spot a rito in the streets, feathers a brownish-red. </p><p>He walked the streets, not exactly sure what he was looking for. Bolson Construction was somewhere in the village, though they hadn't been Link's main reason for coming. When he'd slept out in the woods, he'd dreamt of a home, of playing in a pond with a little girl, jumping from the roof with a cucco. He knew, somehow, it had been Hateno. </p><p>He left the main area of the village, towards a more secluded area. Bolson Construction's base was there, and after was the bridge. He could already see two young children playing, and wasn't sure for a moment whether or not they were real. A boy, older than the girl, both of them blond, the girl's hair a shade darker. Halfway across the bridge, blue eyes and dimpled smiles. </p><p>"Excuse me, can we help you?" He was on the other side. A woman stared at him, confused and a little wary. He blinked, tongue-tied, because his feet had just <em> moved </em> and he hadn't meant to startle her and- </p><p>"Hello?" </p><p>"I'm sorry," he blurted, face hot. "I didn't mean to, I mean, ah," Link struggled for words, not sure how to say anything that didn't make him sound either like a creep or a lunatic. A man came around from the side of the house, built tall and wide and carrying a bucket of rotting scraps. </p><p>"You alright there, kid?" Link nodded, too flustered to even mentally protest at being called <em> kid</em>. A quiet, cynical part of his mind still snarked, <em> I defeated Calamity and I'm still 'kid,' huh</em>. </p><p>"I'll just head back to town, sorry to have bothered you," he told them, and turned around. Everything about this place tugged at the threads of his mind, pulled them until he felt ready to unspool completely. He couldn't, not with these people here. </p><p>Even if he had known this place once, it clearly wasn't his to know now. </p><p>The people who had a home there now were nice, and he would content himself with that. Link crossed the bridge and left the home and Bolson Construction behind him. Hateno was exactly the same as it was just minutes ago, which seemed wrong to Link in a way he couldn't name. He went into the general store and bought half of the arrows, as well as cooking ingredients. It was difficult to find a traveling merchant with fresh milk, so he bought plenty as well as some hylian rice. </p><p>It would be nice to cook, take his mind off of, well. Everything, just about. </p><p>Link settled down at one of the cooking pots under a nice open roof, some sort of outdoor communal kitchen. It was stocked up with rice, dried herbs, extra wood and kindling, bits of flint. Link didn't use any of it, instead pulled out his own supplies. He was just a passerby after all, it would feel wrong to use this community's resources for himself. </p><p>He cooked a nice meat and rice curry, the sauce thick and savory the way he liked it. While it simmered, Link conspicuously glanced around to see if anyone was eyeing the other cooking pot. The rito from earlier stood not too far away, and Link caught his eye. </p><p>"Would you like some?" If the offer surprised the rito, it didn't show. </p><p>"If you're sure. I am Edli," she said, sitting across from him. </p><p>"Link, and I'm sure. There's enough for two," usually because he ate enough for two, not that he'd mention that. "I planned on using both pots, didn't want to put you out." </p><p>"I appreciate the warning then," she said, her tone the only indication that she was amused. Link set it aside and pulled monster parts out of the slate, and set about making an elixir. </p><p>"I've never understood the appeal of such concoctions," she said, eyeing the other cooking pot. "Wouldn't it just taste, <em>vile?"</em> </p><p>"It can, if it isn't made well. I once drank an elixir that tasted of rot and worms." Edli gagged at that, and he bit the inside of his lip to keep from laughing. "Mine usually taste alright. This," he pulled out a chickaloo nut, "is something you can use to help the taste. Certain bugs in elixirs help too." </p><p>Edli listened attentively, despite having had no apparent interest in elixirs before. Well, he figured he could tell her more. He explained which monster parts worked best for elixirs, and warned her against using others. They just weren't worth it for an elixir and were better put to other uses. </p><p>He plated their meals as he spoke, since Edli seemingly had no issue discussing monster parts over a meal. She continued to ask about elixirs as they ate, and watched more attentively as Link bottled the hasty elixir and started on another. </p><p>"This one should last about three hours. You can make them last for up to eleven, but I generally wouldn't. It just leaves you exhausted afterwards, so it's best to drink a weaker hasty elixir. Chilly and spicy elixirs, though, you'd want to make stretch for as long as you can." </p><p>"Fascinating. You know, if these warming elixirs were so readily available, we might get more hylian visitors at Rito Village. Though I assume we will regardless, since our legendary master returned to us." Edli made a trilling noise, the feathers along her crest and head puffed up slightly. Either joy or pride, he wasn't sure. </p><p>"Legendary master?" </p><p>"Surely you're joking. Who hasn't heard by now that the masters of legend returned? Our fallen champion, Revali, as well as the champions Mipha's, Urbosa's, and Daruk's. And, of course, Queen Zelda." Link felt the world tilt. </p><p>"The champions," the words were little more than breath, and Edli was still talking. </p><p>"Such a strange, unfortunate mystery, though. To think, all champions from one hundred years ago have been returned to us, save the supposed knight of legend. Who's to say whether or not he truly existed, then. Though, Queen Zelda did say that she awaited one final champion, and if anyone could say then it would be her, would it not? Ah, Link?" </p><p>Link blinked at her. </p><p>"The champions are alive?" </p><p>"Well, yes, I've just said that. Around, oh, around a month I think it was, after Calamity's end, the four champions emerged from their respective Divine Beasts. They attended Queen Zelda's coronation some weeks after, I believe, though I'd left Rito Village by then. Say, is that elixir burning?" </p><p>Oh, Goddess, it was. Link salvaged it as best he could, but the damage was done. Now he had a subpar elixir to his name, and a whole other host of issues. He parted ways with Edli for the evening, and went to sleep in the local inn. </p><p>He dreamt, again, of cuccos and laughter and mud between his fingers. He dreamt of calluses and too-quick reflexes, and a little girl telling him he looked like a dancer. Warm, nutty milk and flaky oatcakes. </p><p>He woke with wet eyes. </p><p>That morning, Link eyed the high cliffs around Hateno Village and pulled on his climbing gloves and bandana. The mindless strain was good, welcome. His energy was focused solely on footholds, on his weight distribution. It pulled at his muscles and tore at his fingertips, and Link knew there was probably an easier path upwards but he didn't care. </p><p>When he reached the top of the first hill, he sat in the grass and gazed up. Far off, he could see a tower that some townsfolk had talked about. A couple little boys mentioned a young girl there, and some old researcher. He'd go later, maybe. For now, he looked out at the sea. </p><p>On the beaches below, he spotted Bolson Construction buildings. More of them were one-level, from what he could see. He backed up, got a running start, and launched himself over the cliff face. The air tasted of salt, the lower his glider brought him to Kitano Bay. </p><p>There was an old path that led up the hillsides, back towards Hateno. He laughed, high above it, and angled his body more towards the buildings. Not so close as to frighten anyone, but enough to not have to walk too far to arrive. He still hadn't met another person, hylian or no, with a paraglider like his. Most people he'd met didn't appreciate someone without wings flying down into their village. </p><p>The people welcomed him into their little bare-bones village, though only a few people were around. A child, a couple elders, and a heavily pregnant woman were all together, gathered around lidded cooking pots. There were some boats on the water, likely fishing. </p><p>"Don't be shy now, c'mon over," an older woman crowed, and Link approached the group. Whatever they were cooking smelled <em> amazing</em>. He didn't offer much to their conversation, content to listen to them continue whatever they'd been talking about before. </p><p>To make up for being unable to contribute, they all came together and made meals for those that fished all day. It was a little like Lurelin, but less established in its rhythm. </p><p>"My husband always wanted to be a fisherman, but there were always too many lizalfos on the coasts. Now, its a little easier. They come sometimes, but there's enough of us to take 'em!" Hylda, the pregnant woman, said. </p><p>"Ah, but who could've guessed that cooking fish could be so finicky? The fish here are so plump, but always come out so bland." Link nodded in understanding. His first tries had been that way too. </p><p>"I could show you? I'm not the best, but I stayed at a fishing village for a time, and they're the <em> best </em> with seafood," he offered, and smiled at the way the woman's eyes lit up. </p><p>"Would you? If it isn't too much trouble, I'd love to learn!" </p><p>And so, Link did. He walked out on their dock with a spear and eyed the water. A few mighty porgies, some hearty bass. He speared three, getting two with the last strike, and took them over to the group. </p><p>He walked them through it the way Sebasto and Kiana had for him, and showed them which spices he liked to use, which nearby fruits he thought would do best with them. It was nice, and it helped to help others. When the sun began lowering over the clifftops, Link waved goodbye and started up the trail to Hateno Village once again. </p><p>The innkeeper waved at him when he entered, and Link gave a small smile in return. He closed his eyes and tried desperately to grasp onto this feeling. </p><p>Instead of waking with crusty, wet eyes, Link awoke to the feeling of a forgotten dream. His muscles were tense, though he couldn't recall what the dreams had been about. It was best that way, probably. </p><p>Hateno Village was as quiet as it had been the day he arrived, and Link figured it was a good a day as any to leave. It was peaceful, but it didn't pull him to stay the way Lurelin had. There was only one thing he'd come for, really. The little house he'd dreamt of more than a week ago was occupied, so it would do him no good to stick around.</p><p>It couldn't hurt to get a last look at it though, could it? </p><p>He walked to the end of the bridge and looked across it. An elderly woman was rocking in a chair on the incline at the side of the building. She was pointed towards the cliff, overlooking the land below. Even from the distance, Link could tell that she was older than many of the other village elders he'd seen here. </p><p>Link must have stood for too long, because he caught her attention. She turned towards him, and clutched at her chest. Panicked, Link took a halting step forward, arm outstretched. The woman stood and wobbled down the ramp, and Link stood, frozen. </p><p>She stood at the end of the bridge and beckoned him forward, so he walked. It was strange, maybe, but Link didn't care. He probably owed it to the woman for having startled her so terribly. When he reached her, she used old, leathered hands to pull him down by the cheeks. Granted, he didn't have to bend far to be eye level with her. </p><p>"It couldn't be, not in a hundred years, but," the woman breathed, her gaze flitting from his eyes to his hair to anything and everything. It was vaguely uncomfortable, being scrutinized too closely, but Link stayed still. </p><p>"Boy, tell me, what are you here for? Who are you?" </p><p>"My name is Link," he told her, and his hands shot out to steady her when she nearly collapsed. Link felt a drop of panic when she cried, a sharp, painful sound. The man from the other day rushed out of the house, glowered down at Link. He was a fair bit taller than him, and probably twice as wide, all muscle. </p><p>Link pointedly reminded himself that he was a knight. </p><p>"Smith, Smith, come," the woman flailed an arm, and the man dropped his glare to go to her. She smacked his arm with one hand, the other firmly buried in Link's tunic. "Link, oh, it couldn't truly be you. It's been <em> so long</em>." </p><p>The woman before him blurred, and it took him a moment to realize he was crying. </p><p>"Ma? Ma, are you alright?" </p><p>The door opened again, and the younger woman came out of the house, expression halfway between exasperated and worried. It shifted just to worry as she took in the sight before her, and she moved to the old woman's side as well. </p><p>"Aryll? Oh, do let the young man go," she said, patting the woman's arm. If anything, she pulled harder at Link. He stumbled towards her, mind looping on that name. <em> Aryll.  </em></p><p>
  <em> Aryll, come on! Pa's gonna be made if you get stuck in that tree again!  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I'll miss you too. We can write to each other though! Come on Aryll, smile a little? </em>
</p><p>"Aryll? You're my," Link started, tongue stuck on <em> sister</em>. Hesitantly, his hand reached for hers on his chest. She switched her grip to hold him like a vice, old hands surprisingly strong. Her skin was cool, bones thin and wiry, and Link held her as gentle as he would a feather. </p><p>"You've returned, Link. Goddess's mercy, it's been so long. You were gone so long," she repeated the words against his skin, and they branded themselves into his collarbone. He had been gone a hundred years. She had to be, what, a hundred and eight? Nine? </p><p>How old had his sister been when he'd left to join their father? Of everything he wished he could remember, this was what he wanted most. To know his sister, who'd had to live the last hundred years without him, remembering him. </p><p>"I came back. <em>I came back</em>." </p><p> </p><p>Link had a nephew. Named after their grandfather, Smith was healthy for a sixty year old. He'd lived on and farmed the land for much of his life, and his wife Vae had birthed them one daughter, Flavia, who'd passed during childbirth. Smith and Vae raised their grandchildren as their own, named Leon and Arie after Link and Aryll. Flavia had been named after Link and Aryll's mother Flori, who'd also died after giving birth to Aryll. </p><p>Link sat in his childhood home, filled with new decorations but still overwhelmingly familiar. He sat with his family, learned their names and likes. </p><p>They didn't seem to fully believe that Link was Aryll's lost brother from one hundred years ago, but it was quickly becoming apparent that it was the truth. Whenever Leon or Arie had a question, he answered it. It was uncomfortable at times, talking about what little he could remember of the past, but he answered regardless. </p><p>He normally found a way to circumvent questions that got too personal, but couldn't bring himself to do so with any of them. They were precious, each of them. </p><p>"I'd heard rumors that the other champions had returned, but I hadn't dared hope," Aryll told him that evening, the children put to bed. </p><p>"I only just learned that they," Link trailed off, not sure how to continue. Aryll nodded as though he'd said it all. </p><p>"My silly brother, look how young you are. So spry and it took so long to greet your sister? I should toss you off the roof with a cucco," she grinned, teasing. Link smiled at her, as though he wouldn't mind at all if she did. </p><p>There wasn't a spare bed in their home, but it didn't matter much to Link. He spent another night in the inn, staunchly refusing to let any of them give up their own bed for him. In the morning, he showed up so early that only Aryll and Vae were awake, the other three sleeping inside. </p><p>They showed him the little garden in the back, various little fruits and berries and mushrooms growing around the yard. The pond had been dug deeper some fifty off years before, and stocked with hyrule and hearty bass and some mighty carps. The apple tree was still there, far stronger, branches wide and filled with fruit. When he shut his eyes, he could just barely picture a little girl in its branches, stuck for the umpteenth time. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>hello!! i apologize for any mistakes in this, i don't have a beta so any mistakes are on me! this fic has been a labor of love to write! somehow i managed to finish all of it without ever giving it a name haha :^) also, i'm always open to tag suggestions so if you see something that you think needs to be tagged for the fic feel free to comment! that said, some tags will probably be added as i continue to edit everything</p><p>link is the opposite energy of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_FQU4KzN7A&amp;t=113s">potion seller</a>. i had to take several breaks because that was all i could think of. also, i really did look at the elixirs and say 'that would taste bad. let's fix it, and also make them more useful to everyone else' huh</p><p>also. canon is a suggestion. i have heard it say that link has no family, and have elected to ignore that, thank you.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Link stayed in Hateno far longer than he'd expected to. The innkeeper started charging him by the week instead of nightly, and he hardly minded the drain on his rupees because he still managed to sell elixirs to townsfolk and travelers alike, and made a fair bit since they were almost always medium to higher grade. </p><p>He hardly noticed winter set in until Aryll swatted his arm and told him to buy a thicker coat if he planned on staying. After that, he noticed how his breath puffed out in front of him at night, and how those in Kitano Village by the bay were always bundled up when he went down to visit. </p><p>He bought a thicker coat, and began stocking up on spicy elixirs. He made elixirs of all grades so that someone could buy a cheaper one if they needed to. They were all well made and none tasted like swill, but Link figured it would be wrong to only make the best elixirs during the cold season. </p><p>The second month of winter, Link was making more quickly-made, cheap spicy elixirs than he was the higher quality ones. Townsfolk appreciated them, especially the families in Kitano. The sea made the breezes colder, and he taught them how to incorporate certain ingredients to make their dishes hotter. Lurelin was far enough south to not have to worry about winter, so he had few pointers beyond cooking. </p><p>There were some days, weeks, where it was too icy to make it down to Kitano. The freezing temperatures plus the icy coastal wind made for bad winding roads on the hillside. During those periods, Link stayed inside with his little family. </p><p>Leon enjoyed learning how to make elixirs, though he didn't quite have the patience for it yet. Arie had patience in bounds, but had little interest in monster parts. Between the two of them, they could've made either a terrific or terrible craftsman. </p><p>Link knew, instinctually, when the last snowstorm of the season hit. It wasn't the worst they'd had in the last few months, but wasn't the easiest either. Together with Smith, Link hauled snow off the cliff and bridge. It wouldn't fully melt for another few days, but it would go a lot faster than if they'd left it all there. </p><p>Link cleared out the area around the cucco pen, so hopefully they could come out in short bursts sometime next week. </p><p>It was nice. Simple work, nothing extravagant or strenuous. Fulfilling, the same way hauling nets had been with Mubs. Almost a quarter of Link's notebook was filled, with everything from old legends to recipes to descriptions of bugs along with terribly unspecific pictures. Circle-circle-legs-wings-eyes. There were significantly fewer of these, as Link had soon realized he had next to no artistic merit. </p><p>Many pages were dedicated to these last months of winter. </p><p>He wrote of his family, of the memories they shared with him. Of his own memories, that had started out as flashes and feelings but had steadily become more detailed as he'd recounted them to paper. He wrote of Aryll once falling from the apple tree, a younger thing then, and Link had caught her in the knick of time. </p><p>He wrote of leaving Aryll with their grandpa, so their dad could bring him to the castle. His dad had been as proud as he was somber, though Link hadn't fully understood why at age twelve. He'd always liked training with the spears in the Zora Domain, and playing knight with his dad in their small yard. </p><p>He'd understood, later. Years into his training. His dad had died when he'd been seventeen, a handful of months after King Rhoam had entrusted Zelda's safety to him. He'd written to Aryll after that celebration, careful with his wording. Both because he didn't know whose eyes might see those words, and to not worry his sister. </p><p>Link hadn't written of it in his journal, but he had once accidentally found those letters. He'd been searching for a specific kind of dried mushroom, and almost all of their store chests looked the same to him. He'd picked up a small one, and the letters and a few keepsakes had been in it. </p><p>He hadn't written of it, but Link had sat at the cliff and looked at the valley for hours in the cold. The snow had turned to ice in the night, so it was somewhat precarious for someone who didn't have a paraglider. Link did, though, so he kicked his feet over the edge and tried not to let tears freeze onto his face. </p><p>Winter did thaw into spring, and Aryll knew before he did that he would soon go. </p><p>Maybe it was the wisdom of technically being the big sister now. Maybe it was that hundred years of difference. Either way, Aryll gave him a new fountain pen to travel with, a vial of ink, some preserves, and extra flint before he left. </p><p>"You always were a terrible fire starter. Bet you still use magic arrows to start your fires," she smiled, teary eyed and teasing. </p><p>"Magic spears," he grinned, and she guffawed a laugh. For such a bony old woman, she gave a hug like iron. Link welcomed it, and tried not to lean too hard into her. </p><p>"You'd best come back, you're not getting any younger now Link." </p><p>"I will. I'll be back, Aryll." </p><p>She clicked her tongue at him, swatting him away. "Don't you get all teary-faced at me, hear? Go on now, you better write more often, you great cucco." </p><p> </p><p>The most immediately unpleasant part of travel was the squelch of mud under his boots. Link focused on this, rather than on the muck in his stomach. He hadn't necessarily wanted to leave Hateno, and felt it freshly in every step as mud pulled at his heels. </p><p>If Link had wanted to leave, he wouldn't so often come across a particularly long hightail lizard and catch it, and wish to show it to Leon. Wouldn't sit at his campfire at night, stirring memories from his near and distant past. If Link had <em> wanted </em> to leave Hateno, he wouldn't feel so downright miserable. </p><p>But by the Goddess, had he needed to. </p><p>For so long, Link had kept in motion. Whether it was waking one day in the shrine, memory a yawning void inside him. Or traveling with the princess, a century ago, days and weeks of travel reduced now to whispers and notions. Link moved, and he was only now learning how to slow. How to spend weeks and months in one place. </p><p>That was all he could manage yet. Just a few months, and then he'd gotten antsy, knees bouncing every night, fingers twitching to hold a blade. A farming hoe just wasn't the same, didn’t give the right weight and twist when he thrust it. The view from the cliff was beautiful, but never changing. </p><p>He stared up at the night sky and wished he was at Prima's inn. He'd spent countless nights listening to her talk, quietly impressed with how many creative ways she managed to turn down her romantic pursuer. Just before he'd left, Prima had told him that Manny managed to collect over thirty restless crickets before they were mysteriously set loose. </p><p>Link shut his eyes and hoped for dreamless sleep. </p><p>He woke clutching a blade, gasping up at the starlight between tree leaves. </p><p> </p><p>Without much of an idea as to where he was heading, Link found his path retracing to Dueling Peaks Stable. It was mostly the same, though seemed a fair bit more populated than it had once been. The few homes by the forest had stretched further into Blatchery Plain, about half a dozen buildings of obvious Bolson Construction design. One of them seemed to double as an inn and general goods store.</p><p>The guardians in Ash Swamp were gone as well, although Link couldn't tell if anything had been done about the ruins yet. Glancing at the blue shrine, he supposed he could have just used the sheikah slate to get here rather than trudge through the early spring mud. Well, there was always next time. </p><p>At the stable, Link was pleased to see a familiar face. He gave Beedle a beetle in exchange for a hot meal, and bought most of his stock of arrows, always glad to have more, as well as a few butterflies. There were two cooking pots now, and he got started on making elixirs in one of them. </p><p>It was almost easy to fall back into this familiar pattern. He wished it could have been moreso, but maybe he didn't deserve such ease. </p><p>Link stared at his bubbling elixir and tried not to dwell. He used to be much better at not dwelling. Or perhaps not, it wasn't like he could remember anyway. He let his hands go through the familiar motions of boiling elixirs, flavoring them with chickaloo nuts and acorns, and spicy peppers for spicy elixirs. It might be spring, but perhaps people would still be interested in something extra to stay warm at night. </p><p>A few of the stable hands remembered him from the last time he'd passed by, though he hadn't stayed long. Still, a couple bought spicy elixirs to stay warm when they worked at night. They told a few of the travelers, and Link kept busy making elixirs throughout the day. </p><p>He wondered if a small pot was something he could keep in the slate. It might be easier than constantly ladling elixirs into his spare glasses. He'd have to head to a larger village to get one though, there wouldn't likely be a pot-seller roaming the stables. </p><p>Link figured that he would get it when he got it. He looked around the stables, just starting to wind down with the setting sun. That wasn't to say that the stable was idle, since the stable hands were still working with the horses and hauling wood, and Link could see people milling around in the small collection of homes, not quite yet a village. </p><p>The stable didn't have a spare bed for the evening, so he set up his bedroll close to one of the cooking pots. Hopefully they'd set up more beds sometime, but until then he'd be fine camping outside. He could see Beedle slumped by his giant pack on the floor, also unable to get a bed, poor guy. </p><p>Link squirmed in his bedroll, restless. At the top of the Dueling Peaks, he could see the faint orange glow of shrines untouched. He thought of Hateno Tower, of the blue shrine just across the field by the pond. </p><p>He hadn't climbed a mountain at night since he'd taken to night hikes on Mount Tuft on the coast. </p><p> </p><p>Having a map, Link found, was quite nice. Whatever technology the Sheikah had used to create their towers, however they knew where villages and stables were, they kept up with the smaller settlements. Link could see, just barely, where old ruins were in Ash Swamp, where little squares and rectangles sat as new homes were built on Blatchery Plains.  </p><p>Every other shrine he'd been to was marked, even in the strange void. So much was blank, just regional outlines on a grid. The sun was rising, the blue glow of the shrines on the Dueling Peaks and the tower all more visible. Link watched the dawn from the top of the tower and wondered if it wouldn't be so bad if Zelda knew he was out here. If the other champions, alive after a hundred years, knew. </p><p>In the distance, he could see two more towers, and a handful of shrines, most of them glowing orange. Going to them meant moving closer into Central Hyrule, but the prospect wasn't as heavy in his mind as it had been so many months ago. He didn't even know how many, but it had to be approaching a year soon, since Calamity's defeat. </p><p>Just barely peeking over the crest of the treetops, Link could see the telltale horse roof of a stable. It would be busier than Dueling Peaks Stable, being connected to so many main roads in Central Hyrule. </p><p>Link leapt from the tower, paraglider steady in his hands. The air was fresh, harsh on his cheeks and lips. It was the best he'd felt in weeks. </p><p> </p><p>Most of Hyrule Field was cleared of the guardians' remains. The castle in the distance no longer had malice swarming it, the air fresh and cold rather than dry, ash on every breath. Link still didn't go any closer to it than he had to. </p><p>Sticking to the main roads was both a reprieve and a source of annoyance. Whenever he passed an adventurer or merchant, he often made a decent amount of rupees off of tough and hasty elixirs. Tough elixirs especially, since they were decently difficult to come by. Link's own stash of rugged rhino beetles was slowly dwindling. </p><p>Once, he had considered not offering one to Beedle when he'd asked about it. The funny merchant was too good at making Link feel bad, and even though he knew what was happening, he couldn't help but give the man the beetle. Plus, he usually gave Link a decent discount on arrows. </p><p>Link would continue to pretend it was the discount that made him pull out a beetle every time he saw him. </p><p>When Link finally made it to the Central Tower, he noted a fair amount of people around it. There were still a few guardians scattered around, and craters of mud where some used to lay. Disabled stalker guardians sat in a cart, guarded by gerudo women. It seemed that people were still excavating the ancient things. </p><p>And good riddance to them, in Link's opinion. </p><p>He still remembered them, swirling eyes locked on to him, stalkers flying overhead as he tried to get deeper into the castle. If he'd never seen another again, it would've been too soon. </p><p>Along with gerudo women, Link could see most of the other people of Hyrule. Rito, zora, hylian, goron. It made sense, he supposed. So close to what was once the pinnacle of travel, they weren't even a full day's travel from the castle. A couple hours on horseback. </p><p>Gorons and hylians were working on some of the garrison ruins down the road, while the zora and rito seemed to be helping ferry supplies. He pulled his hood down over his face and veered off the road further south. </p><p>It was clear that this area had once been bustling with life. A hundred years had shaped it into something solemn, nature reclaiming what had once been training grounds and market exchanges. Every old ruin he saw pulled him closer, and strangely it was the little copse of trees that pulled hardest. </p><p>He picked the hylian herbs and mushrooms nearby, as well as a few frogs by the lake's edge. It was quiet, and the cover of trees made the area less oppressive than the open fields and roads. Even with the ruins across a stretch of water, the air felt a little easier to breathe. He sat on a rock instead of in mud and looked across the lake. Dueling Peaks was a jagged silhouette in the distance, rising up behind the remnants of a garrison. </p><p>The area pulled something loose in his mind, unexpected though not entirely unwelcome. </p><p>
  <em> Zelda, her hands on the sheikah slate, eyes always on the slate so she never has to look at Link. He understands. He makes himself as unobtrusive as he can behind her, always. She speaks of ancient technology with more care and awe than he’s ever seen her show anything else.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Tell me the truth, how proficient are you right now at wielding that sword on your back? Legend says that an ancient voice resonates inside it. Can you hear it yet, hero?"  </em>
</p><p><em> She half-turns to him, eyes downcast. He doesn’t answer. There isn't any answer he can give Zelda that she would want to hear. The truth, and it will hurt her. A lie, and she will see through it. </em> </p><p>"Fi," he breathed. A frog jumped away from him, splashing back into the lake. He remembered Fi, whose voice filled his mind the way that Hylia's had, a solid, grounding presence. He wondered, for the first time since waking alone, where the Master Sword was. A girl at a stable had once said that she knew of a legend that told of the ancient blade, hidden in a forest. </p><p>Link remembered the words of the Goddess, and wondered if She had spoken to Zelda. He watched the clouds darken over Dueling Peaks, until the mountain was obscured by nightfall. For once, he didn't feel unsettled after doing next to nothing for hours on end. His limbs just felt tired. </p><p>He still used them to climb the tower, avoiding the attention of the gerudo women who stood at attention by the wagon of stalker guardians. Link sat at the pedestal on the top and figured, <em> no time like the present</em>. He set the slate in and waited for the strange blue drop. The second he could, the tower just finishing its change to blue, he hit a shrine on the map. </p><p>No matter how many times he used the slate to travel, not that he did it often, it was always strange. Uncomfortable. He saw his hands disappear into threads of blue, body weightless, and then it was like free falling without his paraglider. Falling, falling, waiting to hit the bottom. </p><p>And then he didn't. He was somewhere away from where he'd been, strands of blue like the drop from the towers, blue like the guardians that still worked in some of the shrines, like the shrines themselves. Like being taken apart and put back together precisely, so nothing was ever off except he was left strangely out of equilibrium until his feet touched the ground. </p><p>Maybe if he did travel more often, he'd get used to it. He didn't want to. </p><p>He stood on the Great Plateau, on the pedestal of the Oman Au Shrine. The last time he'd been here, he hadn't paid any attention to the area. His thoughts had been scattered, fingers relearning how to hold a blade, too tired to sleep. All he'd wanted was to finish the old man's puzzles so that he could have the prize. </p><p>The first time he could remember meeting King Rhoam, he'd been an old man, wandering the Great Plateau. Of every meeting he'd had with the old king's spirit, the one that stood out the most was seeing the man paraglide for the first time. Link hadn't been able to move, his breath caught in his throat. </p><p>The first time he'd spoken in over a century, it had been to ask for the glider. The first time he'd smiled in as long had been jumping from the Great Plateau, a short moment where he felt unfettered, free. It had been around here, Link thought. </p><p>There was a large basin filled with water nearby, with old, mostly destroyed stairs leading down into it. A bokoblin camp was built far away, far enough that they wouldn't pay any attention to him. Link walked up to the wall, into a blown-out chunk. </p><p>Below, he could see campfires and torches around where the old ruins were. Through the slate's scope, he could tell that most of the people were gorons. A couple still worked, large pickaxes digging into rubble. He was surprised it had taken them so long, but perhaps Zelda had more important things to focus on than accessing the Great Plateau. </p><p>He could just barely see reconstructed buildings, built of stone on the bones of old foundations. Gatepost Town, where many of the Hyrulean knights and soldiers had lived. Vaguely, he remembered training with them. Remembered remembering in a memory, at least, a strange second-hand knowledge. He'd been young. </p><p>A fat drop of rain landed in his eye.</p><p>Link returned to the shrine and took shelter just inside it, kept warm enough by his bedroll. It would be another couple weeks before the gorons managed to get in, before people started returning to the plateau. Until then, he'd wander it and stock up on herbs and whatever else. </p><p>He dreamt that night, and only half-remembered it in the morning. <em> Wildberries on his tongue, it's cold enough to bite but Link doesn't mind, sitting by the cooking pot and letting the bread rise under the lid, soft and flakey</em>. </p><p>It had been a nice dream, even if he only knew the sensations of it. </p><p>There were wildberries growing on Mount Hylia, he remembered. It would take almost a full day to get there, but it wasn't like Link had any other plans. He set off for the snowy mountain, glad for the distraction, the destination. </p><p>He had to pass the Temple of Time, half destroyed and occupied by a few stray bokoblins. It didn't feel right, leaving them there. He killed them, only the ones that had made the temple their home. It was rare that he purposefully engaged with monsters, but he had to fight them to keep up his stock of monster parts. He just preferred that they attacked him first, that it wasn't a mindless killing for the sake of killing. </p><p>He harvested their horns and guts and fangs, and sat in the entryway of the temple. Morning light streamed in, shining over the goddess statue with Her holy light. He had to wonder, how often did she shine Her presence like this? </p><p>He knelt before the statue, far larger than the ones in towns. </p><p><em> You who have conquered the shrines, I may amplify your being and give to you greater health and energy for your victories. Do you claim this gift, my hero? </em> </p><p>Link couldn't recall how many shrines he'd been in. Plenty enough for the Goddess's recognition, it seemed. </p><p>"I would claim it," he told her. Almost immediately, he felt the warm rush of Her blessing through his body. He felt light and whole, any weariness in his bones diminished to nothing. Hylia's light didn't fade around the statue, and he asked what he'd come to ask, the question that had been in his throat even before he'd noticed it. </p><p>"My memories," he swallowed, almost afraid of Her answer. "Will I ever get them all back? I want to remember, but do I have to travel all of Hyrule? Sit down at every lake, visit every ruin?" He waited for any answer She saw necessary to give, and hoped She didn't feel his bitter disappointment at her words. </p><p><em> You have slept longer than your mortal kind is meant to, and you have forgotten many years. Should you seek them, they will return. Continue to be brave, my hero</em>. </p><p>Her glow faded, and Link was left alone in the temple. That was it, Her holy wisdom? It amounted to <em> yeah, pretty much.</em> He could remember his past, but only if he gave up his present in search of it. How long would he have to travel, to gain everything he'd lost? </p><p>"Thanks, then," he sighed, and rose to his feet. Out of the broken wall, Link could see the snow-tipped peaks of Mount Hylia. He could really do with those wildberries now. </p><p> </p><p>It took two full days to reach the first area with wildberries. Really, it had only taken that long because Link accidentally stumbled across a bokoblin camp and a few stray moblins. They'd been near a small pond, so Link had spent the greater part of an afternoon spearing fish and collecting whatever stores the bokoblins had. </p><p>Dressed in his warm tunic and equipped with a ruby circlet, bought from a travelling gerudo jeweler some months ago, Link wandered the base of the mountain. The River of the Dead was as frigid and deadly as it sounded, too cold for even fish to swim in it. He caught whatever winterwing butterflies he came across, but found more luck in collecting chillshrooms and wildberries. They would be good for making elixirs, the chillshrooms and butterflies. Like winter, during the summer the people would want to cool off and what better way than downing a quick elixir? </p><p>Link spent days wandering the mountain, and at night used the slate to return to the shrine nearby. It was no less disconcerting, even after four consecutive days of returning to the shrine this way. Still, it was better than huddling by a campfire all night, clinging desperately to whatever licks of warmth graced him. </p><p>His tunic kept him decently warm in the day, but night was another issue. </p><p>Eventually, Link descended to the warmer areas of the plateau. He had enough wildberries to last a good while, and as long as he rationed them well he had enough supplies to get through at least half of summer before he'd need to restock for elixirs. One mountain only had but so many resources, so Link left it to wander. </p><p>Revisiting the Great Plateau hadn't been something he'd thought he'd do. It had never really crossed his mind, but there was a strange peacefulness about it. For the most part, it was weaker red bokoblins and the occasional black moblin. Chuchus too, obviously, and keeslings and stal monsters at night. But, for the most part, it was peaceful. </p><p>Link found the old king's home in the forest. Walls made of stacked boulders and whole logs tied together by rope, and a canvas roof. Tables made of planks sitting on large rocks. Nothing near what befit a king, but perhaps befitting of one fallen, a ghost left to haunt the land where he was laid to rest. </p><p>The most homey thing about the place was the cooking pot, an old worn lid leaned against the log bench. </p><p>He imagined living here for a hundred years, chopping trees and avoiding the bokoblin camp downhill. The diary stared up at him, kept open by two small stones, his name on the first line. It was an apology and a plea, and Link shut the book. He'd already saved Zelda, defeated Calamity Ganon. </p><p>He put the book in the slate, and hoped that Zelda never found this place and realized who had once lived here. </p><p> </p><p>Almost two weeks passed, with Link exploring the plateau in all its isolation, before the gorons working on the staircase finally made it through. Link only glimpsed at the aftermath, a muddy plain and soaked fires, clothes hanging up to dry on stone roofs. </p><p>He jumped from the walls of the plateau and glided towards the Outskirt Stable. The next time he went to the Great Plateau, it would be inhabited, rebuilt at least somewhat. He'd seen it empty, and now he would wait to see it full. Until then, he'd travel. </p><p>The stable was surprisingly quiet, given that it was just on the other side of Aquame Lake from the main roads of Central Hyrule. None of the stable hands seemed at all interested in his elixirs, but he did sell a strange man named Trott raw meat for a hundred rupees. He didn't have much gourmet meat, since he really wasn't much of a hunter, but for a hundred rupees he could part with some. </p><p>Something Trott said though did make him curious. Satori Mountain was a good few hours away, and Link made a note to check it out. Now, though, night was approaching and all he wanted was a few hours of rest. He bought a bed in the stable and collapsed on it. </p><p>Goddess, it had been so long since he'd lain on an actual bed. </p><p>He dozed off almost immediately, pleasantly dreamless. He could've stayed at this little stable for another hundred years, could lay right there and do nothing and be satisfied, probably. Which is why when Haite, a child around the stable, squealed and woke him, he was less than enthused. </p><p>He glanced over to where she'd run off to, through the open archway of the stable. Beyond her, he just barely caught sight of a strange glow. Which was not normal. </p><p>Properly curious now, Link shoved his boots on and stood, slinging his sword belt and bow around a shoulder. He barely had his quiver strapped in place before his footing stumbled. Satori Mountain glowed in the distance. </p><p>Link thought of his bed briefly, and then started down the path. A bed, he could get at any stable. But satiating this curiosity? He downed a hasty elixir and ran, pace steady. He'd be able to maintain this speed for a decent amount of time, and might make it up the mountain before dawn. </p><p>The mountain was teeming with life as he climbed it, not a single stal enemy in sight. He only slowed to take in the wonders around the mountain, but remembered the strange glow and continued on. Close to dawn, too close for comfort, Link rounded the top of the mountain and looked down at a small pond. </p><p>A cherry tree blossomed, pink petals flittering to the ground. Small, glowing blupees hopped around the pond, and Link couldn't help but stare at them all. Walking in the pond was a horse-like creature, glowing the same light blue as the blupees, as the very air around the mountaintop. Trott had said that the Lord of the Mountain attracted the wildlife, hadn't he? </p><p>Link stared in awe. He crept closer, every movement controlled, barely breathing. </p><p>Its face whipped towards him, four eyes peering through long white hair. It turned and ran, the blupees at its feet scattering. Link watched them disappear into thin air and puffs of smoke, the glow of the pond dimming to nothing. </p><p>He'd stepped on a fucking twig.  </p><p>Link sighed and sat on the grass. The twig mocked him from the ground, and he threw it off the side of the mountain. He laid back in the grass, suitably exhausted and disappointed, and shut his eyes to rest for a few hours. </p><p> </p><p>Satori Mountain was a trove of natural resources. From the top of the mountain where the blupees had gathered with the Lord, down to the base of the mountain. Endura carrots and silent princesses grew around the cherry blossom tree, both of which extremely difficult to come by. </p><p>Link took to exploring Satori with the same amount of curiosity and dedication he had the plateau. Tucked away by the top was a small area that grew hearty durian trees, something he hadn't seen since he'd been in the Faron region. Lower down the mountain, he found an old campsite. </p><p>The tent had certainly seen better days, as had the rusty shield and sword. The tent itself was little more than canvas secured to a boulder and a stick. The entire area was covered in hylian mushrooms and spicy peppers, which he picked plenty of. </p><p>Link lit the campfire with a piece of flint, and stuck some mushrooms on a stick to cook. He couldn't help but feel relaxed here. Anyone else might have called the campsite sad, just the barest bones of a shelter with no other belongings to be found. </p><p>There was a chest though, and Link took a peek inside it in case there was ore or a weapon of some sort. There wasn’t. A lot of dust, and an old, fragile looking journal. Link picked it up with delicate hands. He put it in the slate, not wanting to leave it to be further weathered. </p><p>It was easy for Link to look around and see what he himself might build. The mountain had plenty of food from what he'd seen, and he hadn't even been to all of it. There was no real reason to leave, save for loneliness. Given long enough of a time, Link supposed he might grow lonely. </p><p>On the eastern side of the mountain, an apple orchard spanned over a decent bit of land. All of the trees were old, bearing bright red fruits. It felt like every time he turned around another tree had ripe apples hanging just within arm's reach. Link was beginning to get an idea of how someone could survive indefinitely here. If all he had to do to eat every day was stroll down to his own orchard, well. Link could dream.</p><p>Below that, Link found a variety of herbs, some of them next to impossible to grow in the region. Electric safflina, swift carrots, blue nightshade, armoranth, mighty thistle, hearty radishes. Link had never seen so many kinds of flowers and herbs in one place. Ah, and the common hyrule herb, plenty of that. </p><p>Link spent an entire day each just in those two areas, camped out by the pond rather than the actual campsite. The ducks that lived there didn’t seem to mind the intrusion. One sat atop its nest, and Link caught a peek of eggs underneath it. </p><p>Rutile Lake was surprisingly big, for a lake on a mountain. Some of the trees there were ancient, withstanding the test of time far better than most things Link had seen. Finding the koroks around the lake was fun, each of them a nice surprise or fun puzzle. There were plenty for him to find, all of them giggling whenever their hiding spots were found. He was fairly certain he'd missed some, actually. </p><p>He also may have strayed a bit too close to a courser bee hive. They swarmed on him before he knew they were even around, stinging at him through his tunic. He'd jumped into the water, and the swarm blessedly left him alone. </p><p>Their hive sat abandoned in the tree, and Link took pity and collected the comb. It was pity, nothing else. </p><p>As soon as he could get his hands on wheat, cane sugar, and fresh milk, though, he'd be enjoying some nice honey crepes. Or candied fruits, actually, and wasn't that one an idea. He'd collected so many nice ripe apples, too. </p><p>By the time Link made it to the base of the mountain, ready to leave, a few mushrooms distracted him. If <em> few </em> could be taken to mean, <em> good Goddess, so many</em>. </p><p>Around the base of a massive tree, mushrooms grew aplenty. Endura, sunshrooms, chillshrooms, silent shrooms, zapshrooms, ironshrooms, hearty truffles. Every mushroom Link knew of, at least a few were growing there. And, oddly, a few luminous ore deposits. </p><p>Link eyed the path and jumped from the outcropping, gliding to the road. The mountain was fun for exploration, but Link knew he’d overstayed his welcome. There were resources aplenty, certainly enough for him to grow old off of, but Link wasn’t built for it.</p><p>The path wasn't particularly busy, only a single merchant in the distance as far as he could see. He started walking north, oddly refreshed for someone who had been hiking all over a mountain for at least a week- more, maybe, he hadn’t kept track. The Lord of the Mountain hadn't returned the entire time he'd been there, and he hadn't seen hide nor tail of a blupee. Whatever magic the Lord of the Mountain possessed, though, it had extended to Link for the duration of his stay on its home. </p><p>The fields were nice, sun warm on his face. Ahead, he could see old ruins. Some sort of gathering area, maybe, like a town square for people who loved horses. A traveler stood by the grazing horse nearby, and waved at Link. </p><p>"Hey there! Name's Glendo, I was just enjoying the view a moment. Used to come by here all the time, see, and Hyrule Castle is a better sight now than it used to be." </p><p>Link nodded, glancing over at the castle. No swarming malice, no Calamity, no miasma twisting through the air, choking every living thing on ash. It had tasted of iron, like a bitten tongue, except the bite was sharp in his throat, his lungs, every bit inside of him, pricked his skin open. </p><p>Glendo was talking still, though to his horse. Link walked away, towards the staircase. There was a ring of grass and a fountain around the horse statue, like a viewing area overlooking Hyrule. Another fountain sat on a lower section, decorated with some classic Hyrulean symbol rather than a horse. </p><p>Link leaned against the railing and looked up at the horse, the Gerudo Highlands in the far distance. </p><p>He felt it then, the unravelling of another thread in his mind. Or maybe it was doing the opposite, maybe his frayed mind was being put back together, thread by thread. Maybe it didn't matter. </p><p>
  <em> Zelda, on Storm, quoting advice he'd given her on taming a mount, on building trust. Thanking him, appreciative. It settles something in Link's chest, lets him think maybe protecting her won't be as difficult as she would've liked it to be, at the beginning.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He helps Zelda off her steed when they arrive at the park, and follows her up the stairs. The view is beautiful, with the rising sun. Zelda is looking out towards the distance, haloed.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "See that mountain in the distance? That's Mount Lanayru, it takes his name after the Goddess of Wisdom. Lanayru's decree is very specific, it says: 'No one is allowed, under the age of seventeen, for only the wise are permitted a place upon the mountain.'" She sounds wistful and heartbroken all at once.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "I've prayed at the Spring of Courage and Spring of Power, yet neither have awoken anything inside of me. But maybe up there, at the Spring of Wisdom, the final of the three will be the one." Zelda tells him then, honestly, that she doesn't believe it will. Still, she holds onto the hope that any moment, the next moment, might be the one that changes things.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Link is silent behind her, Fi silent on his back. She's been of no help, and so neither has Link.  </em>
</p><p><em> Tomorrow, they will ride to Lanayru, to the Spring of Wisdom. Zelda will go because she must pray, and Link will go because it is his sworn duty to protect her. But also, he suspects, because Zelda will need him there not as a knight, but as a friend. </em> </p><p>The sun continued to set behind him, the sky behind Mount Lanayru already dark. The view from the park was one overlooking a broken kingdom, its fractures slowly healing. It wasn't beautiful, as the night crept upon it. But perhaps one day, it could be again. </p><p> </p><p>Link sat atop the Ridgeland Tower and looked at the bog below. Lizalfos still had nests throughout, too many to try and clear them out without a cohesive effort. The tower was blue around him, and for the first time since he started activating them, Link didn't feel the immediate need to flee. </p><p>Slowly, he was remembering pieces of who he had once been. </p><p>Once, because Link was no longer that boy. Weighted down, the duty of protecting Zelda, of being chosen by the Goddess to defeat Calamity Ganon. Always silent, swallowing every complaint or protest that pushed along his tongue. </p><p>Link was still quiet, but he was not silent. When asked a question, he responded. When passing a merchant or traveler, he asked how they were, what wares they had. When children in villages or stables approached him to play, he smiled and laughed with them. </p><p>The sword on his back was, currently, a plain traveler's sword he'd picked up some time ago. It wasn't a sword that hummed to him, that spoke into his mind like something tangible. It was just a sword, made of iron, and that's exactly what Link enjoyed about it. </p><p>Instead of Zelda's chosen knight, the one who was destined to defeat Ganon, he was Link, that traveler who brewed elixirs that didn’t taste like monster bits and bug guts.  </p><p>Link liked who he was now, who he had become in this new Hyrule. That was enough; it <em> had </em>to be enough. </p><p>Maybe Zelda would still look at him with disappointment when she spoke and he didn't understand the memory they no longer shared. Maybe she would grow frustrated with him, when he continued to not remember, no matter how many times and ways she prompted him. </p><p>The Link she would look at with that expression was not the Link she had once known, not fully. And he liked that about himself, that he was no longer silent and unemotive. </p><p>Link pulled on his climbing gloves and bandana and took to the skies, gliding towards the high cliffs ahead. It would be steep getting to Upland Lindor, but Link had found that he enjoyed the climb, the challenge. Finding the right places to grab, kept up by nothing other than sheer will and strength. </p><p>And if he fell, at least he had a paraglider. </p><p> </p><p>Hearty radishes grew wild all over the field, and Link dug them out with practiced ease. A few were even big radishes, and he gave all three of them the same small, accomplished grin. There hadn't been any reason for coming here except for the challenge itself, but Link was glad that something tangible had come of it. </p><p>Already, his mind was filled with ideas for what he could eat. The Serenne Stable would have a cooking pot, which meant he could finally put all of his ingredients to use. </p><p>Link heard a whinny, and then a few responding ones. He glanced around for the horses, and his eyes landed on one in particular. His eyes went round staring at her, everything from her coat to her mane to her natural grace making her stand out from the other three. </p><p>They were downhill from him, travelling together. Link watched them, and saw how the one mare stopped to graze. He pulled out the slate and used the scope to see her more clearly. </p><p>She had a glossy dark coat, a deep chocolate with a true black mane and tail. From the knee down, the hair was longer, white even through the mud. She raised her head and shook it, and Link saw a small white strip along her forehead. </p><p><em> It's now or never</em>, he thought, and scaled a few nearby boulders for height. He waited until the mare was in the perfect position, then took off with his paraglider. The other three were walking slightly ahead, the Goddess aligning this moment perfectly, and none of the horses turned to face his direction as he sailed down. </p><p>The second he landed, the mare bucked, surprised and frightened and <em> determined</em>. Link soothed her, and waited the long, long minutes it took for her to come to a stop. He continued to pet her main, cooing softly to her. She stomped her foot and huffed. </p><p>She was <em> perfect</em>. </p><p>He knew the vague direction of the stable, and now all he had to do was get her there. Link steered her forward, searching for a trail. It took almost half an hour, but he found one that led towards the trail below. The mare moved at a steady pace, a little willful at times. It took almost a full hour of slow, careful maneuvering, but Link finally brought her up to Serenne Stable to register her officially. </p><p>"And what'll you name her?" </p><p>Link froze, then swallowed. How could he have come so far, only to not have a name? It had to be a <em> perfect </em> name, because that was what she deserved. He remembered, vaguely, what his previous steed had been named. Epona. She'd been a good horse, brave, steady, faithful. </p><p>But this was not Epona, a rich chocolate rather than chestnut. Wild and willful rather than gentle. And, he could already tell, brave, defiant, powerful. </p><p>"Boadicea." </p><p>"Blessed be." </p><p>Link frowned at the stable manager, then spelled out her name. He penned it in carefully, sheepish now. He gave Link a bed at a slight discount for the offense, though Link had been more unimpressed than upset. One of the stable hands came to bring Boadicea to the side to rest and eat. Link followed as far as the cooking pot, and sat. </p><p>He had a delicious dinner to make. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>this got posted a bit later than i'd originally planned on wow! </p><p>if you were curious, all of the locations that i mention and describe are places in-game! it took a lot of running around and testing and getting distracted, honestly. example: i spent 20 minutes mentally plotting where the houses in kitano village would go and studying the map for potential trade routes and paths. </p><p>i described hylia's blessings a little differently than in-game, i hope that it works well for the story? it was a transactional thing in-game, and i tried to make it more a 'your goddess is literally just blessing you with vitality and strength' sort of feeling. </p><p>lastly, a brief warning to any horse-people: i am not a horse expert! i have never liked/ridden horses, and i don't know much beyond quick google searches of their care. if you see anything from this point on that's just blatantly wrong, sorry about that! feel free to let me know, but consider yourself warned not to expect expert horse talk here. my longest interaction with a horse was petting it on the nose and leaving it alone thereafter</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Link collected the sunset fireflies around the stable, even as several stable hands and travelers looked at him as though he were a lunatic. But, well, he couldn't exactly explain to every bystander that came across him that they were for sneaky elixirs. There were a few stamella mushrooms around the stable as well, so he picked them too.</p><p>He fed Boadicea an endura carrot, in hopes that she would warm up to him faster. Eventually, he knew that she would come to trust and care for him, but until he proved himself worthy of that admiration he would continue to do his best. And his <em>best</em> included feeding her carrots, even though there was perfectly good feed in her trough. </p><p>A merchant sat with Link while he ate, and he offered her a serving of his meat and rice curry. Yammo thanked him, and complimented his cooking, which did not in any way make Link sit taller and grin. Yammo only laughed, and asked about his travels, if he was a merchant. </p><p>"Not really a merchant, but I do make pretty nice elixirs," he told her, and she made a face. </p><p>"<em>'Nice'</em> and <em>'elixirs'</em> don't belong in the same sentence. I'm travelling to Snowfield Stable, and I'd rather brave the cold than down one of <em> those</em>," she made a face, and Link tried to hold back his laugh. </p><p>"Most people don't bother disguising the taste. I have a few different spicy elixirs. Some taste like pepper, and others like a shroom skewer. A couple plain ones too, but those rarely sell." </p><p>"Yeah, I can bet why. Pepper, though? Do you think you could make one with goron spice?" Link thought about it, considering. </p><p>"I haven't tried, but probably. Not really a common ingredient to find," Link shrugged, and Yammo's face lit up. </p><p>"Really? I sell some, on rainy days. People tend to want something a little hot when the sky pours, y'know. Anyway, if I gave you some, do you think you could make one? I'd pay plenty for it!" Yammo practically bounced on the stool, and Link finally let out a bark of laughter. He nodded, not trusting himself to speak without laughing in her face again. If she minded it though, it didn't show. </p><p>Link worked on the elixir in the cooking pot, smiled to himself when Yammo had to turn away. He added the bokoblin horn and warm darner as quickly as he could, and told her when the pot lid was back on. After a decent twenty minutes, he lifted it again to add the goron spice, and mentally lamented what a shame it was. </p><p>It really was difficult to get, and she was just using it on a spicy elixir of all things. He would've gone with a nice curry or steak dish. Maybe overtop a sweeter dish, to really give a <em> wow </em> to the mouth. Or on some grilled greens and mushrooms. </p><p>Really, anything but a spicy elixir. </p><p>When it was finished, Yammo sniffed the bright orange concoction. Her nose unwrinkled as her jaw dropped. She looked between the elixir and Link a few times, then sniffed it again. </p><p>"You're <em> joking</em>. All I had to do was ask someone to throw some spice in there, and I could've been travelling with <em> this? </em> Man, you have no idea how many times I've made the circuit through the freezing cold," Yammo sighed, and slid the bottle into a satchel at her side. </p><p>"You said you make ones that taste like pepper?" </p><p>Link grinned, and pulled out his slate. </p><p>Yammo was probably more impressed with the smell of the elixirs than she was with the strange, ancient technology at Link's hip. She sold him what she had in stock of goron spice, and gave him a decent deal on the other cooking ingredients she had on hand. He bought almost a hundred rupees from her, and she from him. </p><p>Really, they probably could've just traded their wares and called it a day. Link would've been short about sixty rupees, but he wouldn't have minded much. He pulled out his journal and added the ingredient to the spicy elixir page, though he doubted he'd often use it. He also added a small note of <em> does not increase quality, only taste</em>. </p><p>They both got beds in the stable, and agreed that they'd travel to Snowfield together. Link stared up at the ceiling and grinned, contentment filling him down to his bones. When he dozed off, it was with the knowledge that something in him, something that he couldn't name, couldn't place, was lighter. </p><p>He dreamt of something nice, left with only afterimages as he woke. </p><p><em> The tartness of an under-ripe wildberry, and the burn in his fingertips of fresh, too-hot bread. Springy on his tongue, laughing and almost choking on a chickaloo nut. Rising on an updraft, aiming, falling, rising, wind rushing</em>. </p><p>Yammo was just getting ready when he woke. He had far fewer supplies to ready than her, so they were still finished at the same time. He paid for Boadicea's care, and was assured that the saddle came with the cost of registry when he tried to pay for it. He wasn't sure if that was quite true, given how the stable manager still wouldn't meet his eye, but he didn't press. </p><p>Boadicea tried a few times to veer off the path, but Link corrected her each time, rewarding her when she listened well. Yammo walked next to her steed, who carried the brunt of her wares. They chatted as they made their way along the canyon. When they rounded it, the slate chirped at his waist, the familiar sound of a shrine detected. </p><p>Yammo didn't notice, busy downing the spicy elixir as the cold of the Tabantha Tundra settled in. Link drank his own, one of the cheaper, flavorless elixirs. It went down like slime, and the heat stuck to the inside of his throat. It did its job though, and kept the biting cold from seeping too deep into his skin. </p><p>It took well into the evening to reach Snowfield Stable, since they had to walk at Yammo's pace. Link didn't mind it much though, it gave him ample time to correct Boadicea. She already listened a little better than she had at the start of their journey, though she was still headstrong. She didn't once ignore his prompting, which was a relief. </p><p>The stable had several campfires around, as well as some bushes with wildberries and spicy peppers growing around. He left them alone, since he had enough of both to last a while. Sitting in front of a campfire, Link spotted two familiar faces. </p><p>Beedle was the more excited of the two to see him, which didn't surprise him in the slightest. Link pulled out a beetle before the man could even ask, and he looked so happy he might cry. Link turned to greet Edli before the man really did. </p><p>"It's good to see you again. Tired of exploring?" Link remembered that she'd only been in Hateno because she'd been restless, eager to see all of Hyrule. </p><p>"Oh, only for now. I've got to return to my roost sometimes, you know? Relax my wings, make sure no one tries and settle into my nest. I'm joking! Don't look so worried for me, really, the elder would never allow such a disrespect. And you? I assume you've taken my advice, come here to sell your warming elixirs." </p><p>"I'm always selling them. I don't know, my path just naturally came here," Link told her, and Edli nodded as though she completely understood. Which Link might believe, if he himself understood. It was true enough, really. He'd just continued traveling wherever he liked, and eventually the road had only led to Tabantha. </p><p>"Well, if you're ill-prepared for the cold I would advise you to turn around. Although, knowing you, I doubt you would. Well, if you've come all this way, might as well continue all the way to Rito Village." Edli peered at him curiously, and Link allowed his small huff of laughter. She was right, he probably wouldn't shy away from curiosity even if he wasn't fully prepared for the cold. </p><p>"Well, luckily I'm prepared enough. I should be able to make it to Rito Village, since you've convinced me, o' great traveler, Edli." Link grinned at the way her feathers ruffled at that, and she sent him a look that might've been displeasure. Or amusement? </p><p>"I suppose if I'm the reason you're going, I might as well make sure you get to the village safely. You should know, though, that cloppity horse of yours will have to carry you. I surely won't." Edli's feathers atop her head smoothed back, winged arms crossed. Ah, Link could recognize this display as pride. </p><p>"We'll keep up. Maybe you'll even lower yourself to walking, if you'd like to hear about my newest elixir," Link told her, and bit his lip to hold his laugh. Edli could be prideful sometimes, but the slightest mention of elixirs or cooking, and she was instantly curious. He thought that she just enjoyed hearing about new things, though he didn't know what else he could really teach her about. </p><p>Horse taming, maybe? Not that she'd shown an affection for them. Swordsmanship? No, she hadn't seemed interested in that either, back in Hateno. Once, he'd mentioned that he was trained with the sword, though there'd been no sparkle of interest in her eyes. </p><p>Perhaps it really was just cooking and elixirs? Good thing Link could talk about both subjects in spades. </p><p>Link set the thought aside and turned to Beedle, who was much more interested in warming his hands than their conversation. Link bought a set of arrows from him, and whatever darners and butterflies he had on hand. Yammo had disappeared into the stable at some point, and he could see her already curling under a bedsheet for warmth. </p><p>He walked to another cooking pot and began making enough spicy elixir to bottle three. A couple for Yammo, and however many he could make in the next few hours for himself. He had a feeling he'd need them more than she would, since she planned on heading back to Serenne Stable in the morning. </p><p>While he cooked, he told Edli about the goron spice and how he'd come to know of its usefulness. Or, perhaps uselessness. It really was just flavoring, and added nothing to the elixir except maybe an extra hour or two of usefulness. A special kind of low-quality elixir that just toed the line towards medium. </p><p>Link told her about other ingredients that he'd found to be effective. He found that he enjoyed teaching her about them, and was far better at explaining things than he'd been when they'd met in Hateno. He also enjoyed listening to her speak, liked the obvious passion in her words when she described her adventures and discoveries. </p><p>"And the way it <em> exploded</em>, truly mysterious! It left behind that strange glob, the chuchu jelly as you called it. I admit, the concoction I made was subpar, especially compared to what I've seen you create," Edli recounted, eyes distant as she walked Link through each step of her cooking process. </p><p>"It takes a lot of practice. That sounds good, especially for a first attempt. Next time, I would try letting the jelly simmer. It's great for beginners learning because the heated jelly becomes the base of the elixir, instead of having to extract other kinds of monster parts in a stew." Edli nodded along, rapt with attention. Link smiled, and continued explaining the different properties of various chuchu jellies. </p><p>"Where did you learn so much anyway? You look small for a hylian. No offence." Link sighed at that, but couldn't even argue the point. Technicalities aside, he was only around, what? Nineteen, maybe? Twenty?</p><p>"I learned a lot of it in training, and in the barracks." The words were out before he realized it, and he blinked when he absorbed the words. He hadn't known that about himself. He remembered killing a chuchu on the Great Plateau and scooping its parts up without knowing why. Crouching at a cooking pot, waiting for the armoranth and bokoblin guts to sizzle, bubble. </p><p>He had just thrown them in, hands steadfast as he selected ingredients in preparation for his fight with the Calamity. </p><p>Edli, far better at reading people than Link, chose not to comment. She ushered the topic away from that, and instead told Link about the odd goron she'd met on the road. A tourism advertiser, boasting about Death Mountain's hot springs. </p><p>"How ridiculous," she huffed, "as though our own Hebra peaks don't have their own hot spring! Though, it is rather difficult to access, especially to those without wings. And we don't typically advertise that it exists, given how perilous it is to reach. Ah, do keep it to yourself too, Link." </p><p>Link nodded. </p><p> </p><p>With Edli flying above, Link was free to push Boadicea as far as he wished. The road was empty, and Boadicea seemed eager to push hard. She'd been cramped up at stables the last few days, plucked from her life of wandering. She ran through the snow like it wasn't even there, and he mentally thanked the Serenne Stable staff for taking care of her hooves so well. </p><p>Having grown up wild, Boadicea wouldn't be used to carrying his weight for some time. He ran her until she tired, and then he slowed her to rest. Ahead, Link could see the Hebra Tower. When he finally reached it, he gave it a considering look. He looked up to where Edli flew, and continued past it. He'd have to pass it to return anyway. </p><p>Spurring Boadicea on, Link let himself feel the stinging cold of the wind. It wasn't the same as flying, but riding horseback was a different sort of freedom. Trusting the animal to carry you, to listen to you, to care for you as you care for it. The two of you, heading towards the same destination and trusting in each other that you'd both get there. </p><p>They reached Rito Stable mid-afternoon, a far cry better than the time he'd made with Yammo going a little under the same distance. Boadicea seemed happy, and didn't even nip Link's fingers when he gave her an endura carrot. He didn't have many, but he stood firmly that Boadicea deserved them. </p><p>Edli got to cooking at the cooking pot, just as ready for lunch as Link was. A stable hand offered to take Boadicea, but Link asked if he could use a spare brush for her first. She nodded at him and thrust the brush in her own hands at him. He blinked after her, a little confused and a little stunned. </p><p>A lot confused, actually.</p><p>Boadicea had no answers for him as he brushed over her coat and mane. She did sigh and bump her nose against him when he finished brushing her though. A wisdom all its own, in his opinion. He smiled at her and scratched behind her ears. She nipped at him, and Link sighed and backed away. </p><p>"You hylians do love your horses," Edli commented when he joined her at the cooking pot. Link wasn't sure that that was quite universal, but couldn't protest on his own behalf. </p><p>"She carries me. Even though she's really just met me, she doesn't act much like a wild horse." Link smiled, and was happy to recount their meeting to Edli when she asked. She didn't quite look like she believed him, especially when he told her how he'd sailed down onto her back. </p><p>"Now, you can't fool me! I know very well that hylians can't <em> fly</em>." Edli had her head cocked to the side, curious even if she thought he was full of shit. Link pulled his paraglider off his back and unfolded it for her to see. </p><p>"I got it a while ago. You might not have seen it in Hateno, since I didn't do much gliding around the village," Link said, though Edli didn't seem to hear it. He could easily spot the curiosity in her gaze, but something like awe too. Her feathers puffed up on her head, and she leaned so close to the paraglider he wasn't sure how she could see the whole thing. </p><p>"A while ago, you say? From where?" Link puzzled over how to answer that without sounding wither like a liar or a lunatic. </p><p>"An old acquaintance," he settled on. He slid the paraglider onto his back again, and hoped that ended her questions. Edli, blessed Edli, always seemed to know when to leave something well enough alone. Link appreciated that in someone. </p><p>Edli had made some sort of hearty salmon stew, though for the most part it lacked flavor. It tasted oddly of nuts, though he didn't spot chickaloo or acorn shells anywhere. He still finished two bowls of it, and thanked Edli for the meal. They walked up the bridges to Rito Village, which she made sure to remind him was very gracious of her. </p><p>A rito guarding the village entrance greeted Edli, and nodded quietly to Link. Edli introduced him as Mazli, and continued to name every rito they passed as they ascended the stairs. Link was overwhelmed after the first five, but for once was glad for his former stoicism. He nodded and greeted everyone he met, despite almost immediately forgetting who they were, who their mothers were, their kin, and what job around the village they held. </p><p>Perhaps if he just didn't refer to anyone by name, he'd get by alright. </p><p>Eventually, they reached the village elder. This name Link made sure to remember; Kaneli. According to Edli, all guests should greet the rito elder at least once, the sooner the better. Otherwise, it could be taken as a slight against the village. </p><p>"Well, Link, please do feel at home here in our village. And you needn't worry about greeting our champion so quickly. He spends much time training, you see, and the journey would be too perilous for such a reason." Link nodded at the elder, though he couldn't help but feel both relieved and vaguely disappointed. </p><p>He hadn't known what to expect when he arrived, though perhaps it should have been exactly this: nothing at all, no fanfare, no dramatic reunion. The only point of reference Link had to go off of was meeting Zelda once again, after Link had ended the Calamity. Muddy, worn, and overwhelmed all at once. </p><p>This, he thought, was a step better. </p><p>Edli led him back down to the inn, and he purchased a bed for later in the evening. He wasn't sure how long he'd stay, or if he might prefer being down at the stable near Boadicea, but Edli seemed eager. She brought him to visit one of her close friends, Saki, and Link was pulled into conversations with them and Saki's son, Tulin. </p><p>Link didn't mind, though eventually gave up on Saki and Edli to focus on Tulin's barrage of questions. The child's questions were similar to ones Link had been asked plenty of times over, and he answered them with the same seriousness he'd given every one before. </p><p>"Do you think you could show me? No one really uses a sword, since we specialize in archery. My dad is one of the greatest warriors in the village! The only one who can beat him is Master Revali, but Master Revali can beat <em> anyone</em>." Tulin continued to speak about them both, and Link listened to every word. </p><p>Not only because he was interested in what the boy had to say, but because Link was curious. About Revali, mostly. Link knew, of course, that they'd once known each other to some degree. They had to, given Zelda's involvement with the Divine Beasts and the rito being the champion of one. </p><p>There were so many places in Rito Village that tugged Link forward. With the bustle of the day, he'd hardly had a moment to think on them. Just being in the village was enough, to pull at his senses, to grab at the threads and pull. When it came time to retreat for rest, Link left with the promise that he would return to show Tulin whatever sword moves he wanted. </p><p>Edli went to her own roost, and Link took his time going down to the inn. </p><p>He stopped at a large platform, eyeing familiar the symbol painted in the center of it. It was the same as the one on the paraglider, though Link couldn't find it in himself to be surprised. His feet moved towards it, and the signpost declaring it Revali's Landing danced in and out of his view. </p><p>Almost immediately, Link felt the memory as he relived it. </p><p>
  <em> Vah Medoh is flying above, ageless and peerless and never-landing. Wind, so strong it threatens to blow Link back a step. Revali, lifting up onto the platform.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Link's second thought about Revali is that he's arrogant, self-congratulatory. He gloats and puffs himself up, makes sweeping motions, all of it theatre. Reminds Link of a colorful bird with delicate tailfeathers Link had seen once in one of Zelda's books, with the way he preens under attention.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> His first, though, is that he moves through the wind like he belongs there. Like the winds move with the purpose of carrying him. It's irritating, especially the longer the rito speaks. And speak he does, grandiose like his words are the only thing that matters. He struts around Link, all the while boasting his superior skills.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Even among the garrison ranks, Link had yet to meet someone like Revali, which was perhaps the most infuriating thing.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Link had been training with knights thrice his age since he was a child. He'd been spit at, shoved, talked down to, and belittled directly to his face by his superiors. And with all of them, all Link had needed to do was best them in battle. And he had. Repeatedly.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Revali, though, is truly the most skilled rito among them, the best archer they'd ever seen. He boasts because he can. Which is why, it hits Link a little strangely when he says, "And yet, despite these truths, I have been tapped to merely assist you. All because you happen to have that sword on your back."  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> And it's the truth, isn't it? If the Master Sword had chosen anyone else, they would be the one to stand before Revali now. But it's Link, because of the sword on his back and nothing else. He can best anyone in swordplay, but ultimately it is the due to the Master Sword that Link is here at all.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> But Revali is still talking, about a duel between them, about the skies, and Link has no time to think about the feeling churning under his skin. His face is impassive, even as Revali leans closer to it, tone mocking.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Oh, you must pardon me! I forgot you have no way of making it up to that Divine Beast on your own," Revali's tone, for the first time, changes to something truly mocking. No longer playing pretend, but low and honest. Familiar, to Link, and makes his skin prick the same way it always does.   </em>
</p><p>
  <em> And then, wind, Revali in the air. Link watches him ascend on his Gale, until he's well beyond his sight. Still, he watches Medoh and wishes, not for the first time, for feathers over flesh. To take to the skies and feel the wind. The closest he's ever come is a cucco's slow drift.  </em>
</p><p><em> But it isn't for him. Zelda will be finished meeting with Elder Lorelei soon, and he knows his absence will already irk her. He doesn't find it in himself to regret it. </em> </p><p>The sun had set long ago. Link took his first step in almost an hour, and retreated down to the inn. He hoped to dream of wildberries and bread. </p><p> </p><p>After a few days, Link had come to know almost everyone in Rito Village. He never asked for any of their names, embarrassed, but many of them still reintroduced themselves to him. They were all kind, welcome to any visitors who made it to their village. According to Cecili, the innkeeper, many hylians had actually come in recent months. </p><p>It seemed that Calamity's end could be felt everywhere, as roads opened up and monster attacks lessened. A year was not long compared to a century, but already the scarred lands were healing. </p><p>Link hadn't been in the village nearly long enough to develop anything close to a habit, but the one constant he'd maintained in the last four days was going down to the stables to brush Boadicea and take her for a ride. She didn't like being cooped up in a stable overnight, so he let her run as freely as she liked for as long as she liked to make up for it. </p><p>The first time they came across a group of three chuchus, Boadicea hadn't even flinched. When Link had spurred her forward, sword drawn, she'd followed. To be fair, she'd also lived in a field where chuchus tended to appear, so he figured she had to have at least <em>some</em> prior experience with them. He'd still given her a carrot after, for her bravery. </p><p>Link enjoyed their rides as much as she did, and let her graze for as long as she wanted around Warbler's Nest. He could tell there was a shrine to unlock here, though he couldn't quite puzzle it out. There was a korok leaf in his slate, always there in case he needed to push a raft, and he thought its wind might be useful with the strange holes. </p><p>Link sat on the orange pedestal and looked at them, Boadicea a short distance away. </p><p>He felt rather than heard it when the wind picked up around him and light feet landed, and barely had a moment to turn before someone spoke behind him. It was strange, hearing such a familiar voice for the first time. </p><p>"You should know, this area is hallowed grounds. Seeing as you aren't doing anything, I suppose it's fine to simply tell you to leave. At once." Goddess have mercy, but he sounded so haughty and tired at the same time. Link turned, and took some small pleasure in watching the rito lose his composure. </p><p>"You! Why, what in the <em> heavens </em> are you doing here? And, in <em> that</em>," Revali motioned to all of Link. Link stared at him, unimpressed. "Oh, don't give me that look. We established long ago that it does nothing against me, or have you forgotten?" </p><p>"I have, actually," Link told him flatly, aiming for sarcastic. If the raised feathers along Revali's crest and the way he startled were any indication, he missed it by leagues. He winced and stood. "I didn't know this was hallowed grounds, I'll leave." </p><p>Revali gaped at him a moment more before blinking. He raised an arm, stopping Link. He could see Revali grasping for words, and gave him whatever time he needed to find them. Whatever look the rito was giving him, Link couldn't decipher it. </p><p>"You mean to say that you've forgotten whatever happened one hundred years ago?" Revali sounded guarded, tense. Link watched the way the feathers on his crest flickered, rose up and flattened out, like he was trying to control them and couldn't quite manage it. He wondered what he'd forgotten. </p><p>"Most of it. There are some things that I've remembered, but it's. Not much. I've been trying to remember more, but I don't know where to go." Why he was so honest, Link had no idea. The only one he'd told of his frustrations was the Goddess, and she'd been little help. If Hylia couldn't offer a word of advice, how would Revali? He almost wished he could take the words back. </p><p>"And yet you've come here, to Rito Village." Link could hear enough to know that the words were layered, but whatever Revali hid, he hid well. </p><p>"I have," Link said, in lieu of anything more revealing. Revali kept his gaze a moment more before turning away. </p><p>"Well, I suppose there are some places here that you might find helpful. Come along, then, o' forgetful hero of Hyrule." Link blinked after him, then whistled for Boadicea's attention. She looked at him, and he took it as a small victory that she didn't immediately continue grazing. </p><p>He went up to her and led her by the reins, walking after Revali. </p><p>"Thank you." </p><p>"Don't <em> thank </em>me."</p><p>Link huffed a laugh and patted Boadicea's neck. He saw Revali shoot him a look, but the rito said nothing. Neither of them seemed eager to start a conversation, so Link took to looking around as they walked deeper into the cold of Hebra Mountain. The cold was biting, and Link downed a chilly elixir from his slate. </p><p>Revali tsked at him. </p><p>Link rolled his eyes at him.</p><p>When they reached their destination, Link took a moment to look around it. The Flight Range, Revali called it. The birthplace of his amazing technique, where only the most skilled archers could even think of training, and so on. Link half-listened, gaze sweeping over the range. He tied Boadicea in a little shelter, seemingly put there for this very purpose though the rito might deny it. </p><p>"And? Have you remembered anything yet?" Revali almost sounded bored, but only almost. Whatever else he was, Link ignored him in favor of walking around. He could see the faint glow of the targets, could feel the updrafts as he peered over the edge. On instinct, Link jumped. </p><p><em> Wind, lifting him up. Rise, aim, fall, and rise again, and again. His tongue still tastes of chickaloo nuts and the sour tartness of- </em> </p><p>"<em> Goddess have mercy</em>, have you no brains? Is there anything between those pointy ears or are they just for show? Honestly, jumping like that without even <em> grabbing </em> your paraglider first," Revali's voice cut in, and Link glided over to where he raved. Link suffered through the brunt of it, and refused to show that he was impressed by the sheer number of ways Revali could insult him. Many of them were creative. </p><p>"I'm fine," he told the rito, which did absolutely nothing to quiet him. If anything, Revali's voice grew louder, more indignant. Link sighed and turned back towards the training ground. He jumped off while Revali was still mid-rant, this time with his paraglider in his hands <em> first</em>. </p><p>He flew, and released just long enough to shoot off an arrow towards a target. It didn't hit the center, but it hit. Rise, aim, fall, rise, a cycle that continued until Link made a full circuit. He landed by Revali, who had quieted. </p><p>"I'm hungry," he said, and moved towards the building. Revali didn't even squawk a protest behind him, although he did catch the rito calling him a rude, uncultured creature without a lick of posterity. </p><p>There wasn't much inside, if it could be called an <em> inside</em>. Really, it was just a larger roost than those in the village. In the center was the cooking pot, some hammocks set up overhead. Two chests sat against the walls, a rug and some pillows nearby. </p><p>The only area that seemed lived-in was one corner where a bow sat, and a low writing desk with a book and quills. </p><p>Link sat at the cooking pot and selected food from the slate. He could feel Revali's gaze on him like something solid, and promptly ignored it. He set about making a meat and seafood fry for both of them. When all it needed was to be watched, he stood. </p><p>"Make sure it doesn't burn." He ignored the sputtering behind him as he descended the ladder. Boadicea huffed at him, seemingly annoyed with the cold already. </p><p>The little shelter was thoughtfully placed, at least. It wouldn't fit more than two horses, but Link doubted many visitors came to the flight range. There was dry hay on the ground, though it looked fairly old, and the only opening was faced away from the windy updrafts. Link tossed an old blanket over her, a little ratty but it would be enough to keep her content. </p><p>When Link was satisfied with her care, he climbed back up the ladder. Revali, predictably, was unhappy at being given food-watching duty. </p><p>"The great warrior Revali would rather eat charred food, all because he didn't want to watch it. Very noble," Link deadpanned, and resolutely didn't show the rito how much he enjoyed watching him get worked up. </p><p><em> "One day someone will believe me when I tell them what a snarky cock you can be." </em> </p><p>Link blinked, the smile twitching his lips upwards fading. Had he smiled when he'd heard that, or was it solely from remembering? He didn't know. </p><p>"We were friends," Link said, and Revali stopped mid-tirade. </p><p>"Were we?" </p><p>"I," Link started, then stopped. What was <em> that </em> supposed to mean? "I don't know. I think we were." </p><p>Revali didn't respond to that with anything other than a frustrating hum. The damn, frustrating bird. </p><p>Link flipped their food in the pot, and wished for a moment that he was petty enough to let the rito's burn. </p><p> </p><p>After two weeks of staying in Rito Village, Link had the beginnings of a routine. He ate breakfast, rode Boadicea to her heart's content, had a strange limbo period during lunch where several of those in Rito Village invited him to eat with them, or asked to see him train, or asked about his travels, or pestered him and called him sarcastic names. By the evenings, he was usually tired enough to fall asleep as soon as he fell onto his bed in the stable. </p><p>He did, it turned out, prefer sleeping closer to Boadicea. It made it easy to take her out first thing in the morning. </p><p>Usually, when she began to tire and he was brushing her out at the stable, Revali swooped down. Not always, but many days. His presence was always welcome, even if most of his speeches were showmanship. He'd come to assume that it was Revali's way of displaying emotion. </p><p>Link wasn't usually sure which emotion he was displaying, exactly, but it was one of them. </p><p>Whenever a rito spotted Link with Revali, they tended to leave them both alone. He'd been confused about it until he mentioned it to Edli one afternoon. </p><p>"Oh? You don't know? Master Revali has spent so much of the last year at the Flight Range. Other than Teba, few of us ever see him regularly. For him to show interest in others is, <em> new</em>, shall we say. Perhaps he's also just curious how a wingless hylian came to have flight," Edli had laughed, and had eased away from the topic when she saw how Link struggled for words. </p><p>It was odd, to think that <em> Revali </em> of all people had chosen to disengage from others for so long. He'd spent the last two days thinking on it, her words drifting back to his attention occasionally throughout the day. One day, Link returned to the flight range and waited in the roost as Teba and Revali flew around the range. </p><p>Whatever challenge had been issued, Revali won it. Link watched Teba return to Rito Village, and Revali landed on the strip outside. He didn't seem surprised to see Link there, cooking up a seafood and mushroom curry. He only sat on the rug and waited to be served his meal. </p><p>"You could <em> offer </em> to help," he told him. </p><p>"You would deny it, so why should I waste my breath?" </p><p>"This could all be for me, you know." Revali laughed at that, and Link glanced up at him over the pot. </p><p>"You certainly have the appetite for it," he teased, and Link wondered. Sometimes, Revali did things like this. Teased him like it was familiar, like they knew each other well enough to do so, to know where to poke fun. Other times, Revali shut him down at every turn, always in the same maddening tone that spoke of disinterest and scorn and self-pity. </p><p>"I've made this before. You hated it." </p><p><em> "And what exactly do you call this? Squishy, hot mushrooms and soggy grains?" </em> </p><p>"If you know I hated it, <em> why </em> did you cook it, exactly?" Revali sneered, looking away from Link, down at the cooking pot. </p><p>
  <em>"I can... make something else?"  </em>
</p><p>"Eat it anyway."</p><p><em> "No, give me that. Disgusting, you've no idea the labor I'm about to endure. Another one of those." </em> </p><p>"Well, obviously, I must! One should never waste the food on their plate, even a master such as I. <em> Must </em> you put another chopped mushroom into my bowl?" Revali sounded disgusted, but he ate regardless. There wasn't a flicker of hesitance that Link could see in his movements, not that Link thought there should be. Despite Revali's moaning, the curry was good. </p><p>The quiet was nice as they ate, companionable. </p><p>Link had never been very good with words, not before the Calamity and certainly not now. His version of subtlety was swallowing down every word and expression that threatened to rise out of him, until all that was left was a mask. Silence, or uncomfortable truth, with no median he could find. </p><p>"Do you like it here?" </p><p>"In <em> my </em> flight range? I would say it's quite nice, yes." Revali gave him a look that dared Link to argue, and Link dared. </p><p>"In Rito Village." </p><p>"Considering it is my <em> home</em>, I," Revali stopped as Link glared at him. Despite being unable to decipher much from the rito, he could at least tell when he was being purposefully obtuse. "What's brought this on? Woke up with a sudden need for a heart-to-heart between two tragic heroes?" </p><p>Rather than explain his reasons, because he was certain it would only anger Revali more, he offered something else. Skipped several steps to get to that <em> something else</em>, and yet he offered it all the same. </p><p>"You can always come with me. I'm leaving soon, sometime before the end of the month." Which was only a week away now. He planned on leaving in six days, perhaps. Earlier if Revali irrefutably refused. The rito blinked at him, head tilted to the side. </p><p>"I don't have anywhere in mind. I came to Tabantha because the road brought me here, so I'll follow where it leads next. The travel is. Nice." Revali stared a moment longer, and then finished his bowl of curry. </p><p>"What an intriguing proposal." </p><p>Link received no other response, and tried to puzzle out what it had meant. </p><p> </p><p><em> Grilled hearty salmon and wild greens. A new, constant ache in his fingertips, callouses from the sword the only thing keeping his hands whole. Rise, aim, fall. </em> </p><p>Link woke with crusted-over eyes, and a stone in his throat. Whatever it was, it hadn't necessarily been a <em> sad </em> dream, nothing worth crying over. That didn't stop the pitying look he saw in Ariane's eyes as she swept the dirt out of the stable. </p><p>He made grilled mushrooms and snacked on an apple, then rose to get Boadicea. She ran almost all the way to Warbler's Nest, and he slowed her and let her graze. He hadn't come back here many times, and had yet to figure the puzzle out. Little young rito stood at the nest, all singing together. </p><p>Link stopped to listen to them, and after, asked what their song had been for. </p><p>And, an ancient tradition, huh? Well then. Link had an idea for what to do about those stones and their holes. </p><p>When the shrine rose, the children were predictably excited to see it. Link watched them hop around, some of the tension eased away from the morning. When they flew back to the village, Link finally entered the shrine. </p><p>There was no reason it should have taken him almost the entire day to complete it. As far as the puzzles he'd so far went, this one was fairly easy. Out of all three shrine types, Link preferred these puzzles. The blessing shrines left him wanting, though he usually liked whatever he got from them. </p><p>Shrines that had guardians, though. Link didn't like those. <em> Tests of Strength</em>, they were called. The first one he'd entered, he'd walked into the large, empty arena-like room. Then the gates had dropped, and Link had been left to face the guardian that rose with the floor. He'd nearly been blasted straight through. </p><p>All he'd been able to see was a swirling eye, malice, ash everywhere, on the floors, on his tongue. </p><p>Whenever he came across those shrines now, he usually left them alone. He'd defeated Calamity without them, and wanted nothing more to do with the ancient guardians. Puzzles, Link thought, were much better, even if they did occasionally have mini guardians lurking about. </p><p>He emerged to see Boadicea still in the general vicinity of the Nest and grinned at her. The sun looked ready to set, spilling orange and gold over the Hebra peaks. He whistled at Boadicea, who still only ever looked at him when he did. She still hadn't ignored him outright, which Link took as a sign that she would eventually listen. </p><p>They went at a trot, and Galli had a brush ready for him when he dismounted. Link smiled in thanks, and set about removing her saddle. Boadicea had grown a bit softer in their few weeks together. She still nipped at Link if he pet her too long or came near her ears, but occasionally she sighed and grunted in contentment after he brushed her. </p><p>Link planned to purchase a brush for the road before he left. </p><p>Most evenings, Link liked to cook for whatever merchants or travelers were at the stable. The companionship was often nice, and it never failed to warm Link's cheeks when his food was complimented. Sometimes, though, Link just liked a quiet dinner to himself. </p><p>He made himself a seafood fry, flavored with bits of chopped hylian shrooms and wild greens. It was nowhere as good as Kiana's, but it would have to do. Link leafed through his journal after, the wanderlust hitting him all at once. </p><p>He'd traveled so far in the last year, and yet he hadn't nearly seen everything there was. The kingdom was so vast, it almost felt as though he could walk and walk and never see it all. Perhaps it would go quicker now, with Boadicea at his side. And perhaps Revali, should the rito decide to tag along. </p><p>Link wasn't sure how he'd ended up offering, but he'd meant it. It was up to the rito now. </p><p>That night, he dreamt. It was always the same in the mornings, his mind left with the ghosts of sensations. Pleasant enough, all things considered. Link rose, ate a simple simmered fruits dish, and saddled Boadicea. </p><p>His stay in Rito Village was coming to a close soon, and Link still hadn't gotten over to Tabantha and Hebra Tower. He made a day of it, though he only brought Boadicea to the foot of Nero Hill. He scaled up the hillside easily enough, and took a moment to look around at the old ruins. </p><p>Massive pillars, and what Link could recognize as malice scars. Large areas of dirt were dried, withered. Even on some of the pillars, Link could see how they were dark, almost charred. He didn't let himself wonder how long the malice had been there, to cause such damage. Hyrule was slowly healing, but the scars of Calamity were obvious if you knew where to look. </p><p>More obvious in some places. </p><p>He rode Boadicea at an easy pace up to Hebra Tower. He could see, just barely, where the supposed hot spring was, deep into the Hebra Mountains. Edli hadn't been joking about it being perilous for anyone without wings. Link would need far better clothes than his warm tunic and ruby circlet, as well as several spicy elixirs, if he ever tried to get to it. </p><p>He figured he could spend another day or so wheedling out some more neat spots in the area from Edli. </p><p>Neither she nor Saki had many points of interest for him. Nothing he could reach without proper preparation, anyway. Still, Link enjoyed eating lunch with them, and stayed later to enjoy dinner with Teba and Tulin as well. They were happy to have him, and Tulin most of all. </p><p>At times, Link felt settled, content. He felt that he could enjoy another day, week, month, here and be satisfied. </p><p>Those moments had grown few and far between recently, though. His leg often bounced when he sat for too long, and his mind wandered as far as his feet wished to. Everyone in the village could tell he'd be leaving any day, despite Link only ever telling Revali that he meant to. </p><p>Revali still dropped in on Link, twice, in the days leading to his departure. The day before Link was set to go, Revali swooped down into the path before him, the stable just within sight down the road. </p><p>"Have you given it any thought?" Link watched a look flicker through Revali's eyes, there and gone too quick to make any sense of. </p><p>"I have. I think it best that I remain in Rito Village, and you go along to wherever it is heroes go," Revali said, standing straight. He stepped closer, so Link had to look up at him. "Once you remember what it is you've asked of me, then return. Or don't, whichever suits you, little hero." And like that, Revali was walking away. </p><p>Link stared after him, wondering when the rito's puzzles would end. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>wow! okay! first thing's first, i guess: i've only had boadicea for one chapter but if anything happened to her i would cry. oh, also revali appeared, if you're into that sort of thing. and he's got riddles, but no game. </p><p>also: i really like yammo and edli, i think they're fun! yammo is an actual npc in the game that sells goron spice, and she runs between snowfield and serenne stables! edli is the rito oc from chapter 1, and lil fun fact about her is that she's named after windwaker's medli! i forgot to mention that back then :^)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Boadicea made his life brighter, easier, less lonesome. Better in many aspects, all across the board. When it came to seeking out shrines, however, things got a little sticky. Currently, she was left alone at the top of Tangar Canyon while Link made his way through the Temple of Time. </p><p>And, well. The place made his skin crawl. Guardians sat in both of the large sanctum rooms, motionless, staring straight at him. None of them beeped even once, and their bodies were all that sheikah blue rather than malice red. </p><p>It didn't stop him from moving with every step cautious, guarded. He used the updrafts to maneuver deeper into the shrine, the second large sanctum room just as tense and mysterious as the first. He passed under the large archway, out of sight from the guardians. </p><p>The shrine in front of him barely registered as he stepped into the last room. A goddess statue loomed above him, larger than even the one in the Temple of Time. Even in such a dark room, she shone with the light of the Goddess. Link walked around the shrine to kneel at her feet. </p><p><em> You who have conquered the shrines, I may amplify your being and give to you greater health and stamina for your victories. Do you claim this gift, my hero? </em> </p><p>"I would claim it." A parrot of the conversation he'd once had with Her in the Temple of Time. "Thank you," he said, already feeling her blessing warm him. Again, Her light continued to halo the statue, and Link's mouth was forming words before he was aware of them. An effect of the Goddess, maybe, or just human impatience. </p><p>"I can't stop moving, no matter how many people I meet and miss, I can never stay with them. Is it me? Can I not just, just <em> exist </em> without a purpose? I defeated Calamity Ganon, so why can't I just <em> rest?" </em> </p><p>It had been building inside him, this frustration. Ever since he left Hateno almost two months ago. A mounting bitterness, a heavy weariness. His feet felt compelled to walk and his hands to hold a blade even as his mind begged for reprieve. From fighting, from weighty responsibility. </p><p><em> My dear hero, you do not remember it but I fear this is always your greatest struggle. Triumph comes, but it takes time. </em> </p><p>Hot streaks marked his cheeks before he felt the sting in his eyes. Her glow blurred, and slowly faded. He gasped on a breath and looked down at the stone floor. How long had it been, since Link had cried? Since he'd been left a red-faced, coughing mess? </p><p>With the Goddess and guardians in the other room his only witness, Link sat at the altar and wailed. It felt terrible and disgusting, and it left his nose runny and eyes swollen. But he felt lighter, screams unburdening something in his chest. </p><p>It both helped and hurt, to know that this was simply a <em> Link-problem</em>. Every iteration, She had said. Every life he was reborn to defeat Ganon, he was left floundering with the unknown of <em> after</em>. He walked past the guardians in the temple, stiff and sore and tired, and made the climb back up to Boadicea. </p><p>There was endless land before them, and Link changed their course to east, off-roading. Boadicea seemed happy enough to fly over hillsides, a creature born wild. The wind hit his face, stinging his red eyes and drying his lips. Every gallop, every shift of his weight as they rode, was welcome. </p><p>To Link's right, he could see the castle, free of malice and ash, free of moblins and guardians. It wasn't rebuilt, the grand castle he'd glimpsed at in his sharper memories. It was still broken and ruined, but Link could see the boats at the docks in the moat. The castle was scarred, like everything in Hyrule, but it would heal. The people would rebuild it. </p><p>Zelda would rebuild it. </p><p>Link faced forward and spurred Boadicea onwards, towards the tower in the distance. Link left her on the Rauru hillside, and took in the ruins. He knew he'd been to this place before. An old training camp, most of it built over a deep lake and ponds to challenge those running it. </p><p>It was meant to be for those trying to rise through the ranks, to make it from soldier to knight. Link had been tossed onto it since he was young, a child. Not yet fifteen, he thought vaguely. </p><p>Now, the water was an unswimmable, muddy bog. Bokoblins had taken up residence, and so far it seemed no one had cleared them out. He could see several areas that they'd made into bases, with moblins and lizalfos roaming around the edges of the bog, walking on the ramps and bridges. All those that he could see were stronger, mostly silver. </p><p>This would be more of a challenge than he'd thought. He could, technically, ignore the tower and leave it all well enough alone. </p><p>Link walked Boadicea further up the hill where they wouldn't be seen. He had most of the day left to waste until nightfall. </p><p>He spent some of it picking herbs and mushrooms, and some of it napping in the grass. He ate a quick meal before he left at sundown, raw fruits and a hyrule herb to chew on. </p><p>Some of the lizalfos were asleep, so he crept around their small camp to the backside of the training camp. It took a fair bit of slow, steady maneuvering and a few sneakshot kills, but Link did eventually make it to the base of the tower.</p><p>Unfortunately, a small group of bokoblins and lizalfos had made the area their home. There was no way to take them all on at once, so Link prioritized where he could. Where he couldn't, he reverted to pure brute force. He took out bokoblins as quickly as he could, and kicked a silver one straight into the bog. </p><p>It screamed as it drowned, and Link heard the telltale blow of a horn. </p><p><em> Shit</em>. </p><p>He slashed another one hard enough to disarm it, and kicked that one too. A lizalfos came up close to him, and he dodged just in time for it to stab through a blue bokoblin's head. It cried, grasping at its eye, and Link swung at its neck with his blade. He danced away from the lizalfos' spear, and cut into it as he jumped. </p><p>An arrow shot at him, flew close enough to his calf for Link to feel the wind. </p><p><em> Shit</em>. </p><p>Most of the monsters were dead, so Link took a running jump at the tower. His arm braces slowed him down somewhat, but Link was just desperate enough to climb faster regardless. He made it to the third platform and crouched there, catching his breath. </p><p>He could hear them below, searching around the base of the tower. He thanked Hylia that the monsters didn't know how to climb it. He'd be so screwed if they did. Peeking over, he saw a few of them returning to their posts along the old training grounds. Quietly, he climbed to the opposite side of the tower and began scaling upwards, out of sight. </p><p>The satisfaction of having the map wasn't quite enough to have made it worth it. It was mostly hillsides and fields, the only things of interest were the two forests. Link felt his curiosity pique at them, though, and figured maybe the treacherous climb had been worth something after all. </p><p> </p><p>The Typhlo Ruins were, in a word, dark. Dark and weird. The stal monsters and hinox weren't too difficult to defeat. Link remembered some of these sculptures from the Faron region, though, and found it strange that there were so many so far north. </p><p>When he made it into the shrine, he sat down with his journal to write about a few of them. He drew rough sketches while they were fresh in his mind, though they still weren't good. Easier than drawing bugs, at least. </p><p>For once, Link found he was alright with just a blessing shrine. He was honestly too tired to deal with a puzzle, knowing he'd have to find his way back out the way he'd come. Boadicea was still grazing at the bridge. Probably. </p><p> </p><p>After about fifteen attempts at making it through the foggy woods, Link sat back in the grass. Any sane person would probably quit. Boadicea probably wished her rider were more sane. Instead, he pulled himself up and mounted her, and headed into the woods again. </p><p>Link was fairly certain the sun should've set hours ago, but light still filtered through the hazy fog in the woods. He picked up a torch by a set of lanterns, hoping maybe it would help. Boadicea walked slowly, cautious of the swirling fog. She didn't seem spooked though, just cautious. </p><p>The wind blew behind him as he walked, little embers dying on the wind ahead of him. It seemed as good a direction as any, and Link made it farther than he'd managed by just walking at random. Every tree was older than Link could even guess at, like some he'd seen on Satori Mountain. </p><p>They walked between two large cliffs, fog thick even in the little valley. It all seemed to disappear as they walked under a hollow fallen trunk. Sunlight streamed through tree leaves, and Link swung off of Boadicea, steps small. </p><p>He didn't think he'd have needed any of his memories to recognize this blade. Little creatures, koroks, disappeared from his periphery as he walked forward, but he didn't pay them any mind. Link only had eyes for the sword, <em> Fi</em>, stuck into a pedestal. </p><p>Link startled when someone yawned, loud and booming and quiet all at the same time. </p><p>"Ah, I see I've dozed off again." Link stared up at the tree, and realized what, <em> who</em>, exactly it was. He'd heard of the Great Deku Tree, legends told by elders of times before knowledge, knowledge before time. </p><p>"Hm? Well, well, it's you," the Great Deku Tree said, and Link watched with quiet fascination as the tree spoke, his wooden mouth and eyebrows shifting. "You've finally decided to return. Better late than never." </p><p>Link felt his face heat. </p><p>"After so long, I'd nearly given up hope of seeing you again. Even my patience has limits, you know. Ah, but that look on your face tells me you have no recollection of me, however. I have watched over Hyrule since time immemorial. Many have referred to me through the ages as the Deku Tree.</p><p>"That is the weapon created by the ancient Goddess, the sword that only the chosen knight may wield. Believe it or not, it was actually you who wielded that sword a hundred years ago. And, before that too, as only he who possesses the spirit of the hero wields this blade." </p><p>The Deku Tree spoke with gentle wisdom, and Link couldn't help but stand in awe of him. </p><p>"I am still recovering my memories," Link told him, and felt the rumbling laugh in his feet. </p><p>"Yes, yes, I can see that. Young hero, it seems an odd time to come here. Your duty has been done, and the sword that seals the darkness has leant you its power. It rests, now, awaiting the next hero who shall need it." </p><p>"Leant me its power?" </p><p>"Yes, I would certainly think so. The spirit of the sword felt your need and responded, though it took a great deal of power to assist you from so far away." </p><p>Link looked at the Master Sword, steps slow as he walked up onto the pedestal. He put a hand on its hilt, traced the swirling design along the grip. The blade looked tired, if a sword ever could. Its glow was so faint it might have been a trick of the light from the fog. </p><p>"I'm sorry," he told her. "I remember, somewhat. You taught me, protected me. I'm sorry." </p><p>"Now, young hero, I am sure that the spirit of the sword would not want such an apology. It gave its strength so that you may <em> live</em>. A proper show of gratitude would be to live well, would it not?" Link looked up towards the Deku Tree and nodded, fingers still ghosting over the Master Sword. </p><p>"I'm trying," he said honestly. </p><p>"Sometimes, to search for contentment is to run from happiness. To some, joy is found on the seas, while to others it is abound in the skies. The spirit of the hero, I believe, has always been taken to wanderlust." </p><p>Link bit his lip and held back a grimace. The Goddess and now the Great Deku Tree had told him he had an issue settling. </p><p>"I don't know what I'm looking for. I started out searching for my memories, but now I don't know where to go. I don't even know if I want to keep remembering," he admitted, voice tinny and strange. He didn't even know why he was telling the Deku Tree this, really. But he felt familiar, and the koroks in these lost woods felt safe. Like he wasn't really Link, the hero, here. "I don't like who I was." </p><p>The Deku Tree hummed, low and deep, the sound bouncing around the trees. </p><p>"Of all of the heroes I've met throughout time, each one has been different. You, too, are different to the hero I met one hundred years ago. Perhaps there is a restfulness that comes with knowing your beginnings, but is it not more important to come to know yourself? As the young hero you are now, rather than the one that came before." </p><p>"But what am I supposed to <em> do? </em> Fi wants me to live well, Zelda wants me to live as I once was. I don't know how to do either." Link tried to douse it, but the frustration welled up inside of him. Link had traveled for more than a year now and was no closer to any great, mystical answer. The Goddess couldn't grant him one, and it seemed neither could the Deku Tree. </p><p>"I believe that your issue, young hero, is that you seek a <em> task</em>. A goal, that you may conquer. All that is left now, though, is to live. I'm afraid you must find an answer within yourself, if you wish to be at ease." </p><p>Link shut his eyes. </p><p>He stepped from the pedestal, and led Boadicea to a larger clearing in the forest. She'd need some hours before riding out of the woods. </p><p> </p><p>"Hey there! I'm Boldon, Goron City's ambassador for tourism! You've just <em> gotta </em> come up to check out our hot springs! I'm tellin' ya, there isn't anything better!" </p><p>Something about this sounded vaguely familiar to Link. And, ah. Edli, and her secret hot springs he wasn't supposed to tell anyone about. The goron was still talking, poorly explaining how to make a fireproof elixir. </p><p>"Monster parts. Preferably something hard, like fangs or horns for a fireproof elixir." </p><p>"Wow, you know your stuff, don't ya?" The goron laughed, and gave Link a slap on the back that sent him stumbling forward. </p><p>"Yeah, I sell elixirs. Gotta know how to make them." The goron <em> oh </em>'d, and Link thought he was overly impressed. The appreciation was nice, though. A few of the other travelers in the stable approached, asking if they could buy a few extra last-minute elixirs before trying to go up Death Mountain. </p><p>The Woodland Stable seemed to be a hub of travel, being directly between Eldin and Hyrule Field. Unfortunately, the area also seemed prone to flash lightning storms. Boadicea, for once, seemed content to be cooped up in a stable stall. At least it meant that word got around quick that there was someone selling elixirs. </p><p>One person bought a hasty elixir and sniffed at it. After that, several travelers and merchants came up to buy a couple. Link's stock actually dwindled down to almost nothing, which was new. Usually, he had so many that if someone asked for any amount he could give it to them. Now, though, he was coming to the alarming realization that he had to go out and fight monsters if he wanted to replenish. </p><p>And, well. </p><p>There <em> was </em> an old training grounds, with plenty of monsters just an hour up a deserted road. </p><p>Lightning struck the ground outside, and he figured he could wait a day or two for the storm to pass. In the meantime, he apologized to several people because he was out of tough, fireproof, and electro elixirs. Link foresaw much bug catching in his future. </p><p> </p><p>"Y’know what, kid, you go ‘head and take a soft bed, ten rupees off," the stable manager winced. Link had tried to clean up in Pico Pond a little, apparently to no avail. He looked like shit and he knew it, covered in scrapes and bruises, clothes torn and bloody. </p><p>It had taken two full days, but Link had cleared out almost the entire old training grounds. His slate was full of monster parts and weapons, and all it had taken was near-constant vigilance for fifty hours. Link didn't even thank the stable manager, just gave him thirty rupees and collapsed onto the soft bed. </p><p>When he woke, he felt marginally more hylian and less like a walking glob of chuchu jelly. He had the vague sense that he'd been training in his dream. </p><p><em> The water is freezing cold, even so close to Death Mountain. It shocks Link into immobility every time he falls from the platforms, either shoved off by bigger soldiers or because his fingers were stomped on while climbing. Sweat, sticking his hair to his forehead. His father, yelling that his times need to be faster. The soldiers and knights and royal guard, sneering at him, just a little boy playing knight</em>. </p><p>Link stared up at the ceiling for a moment more before sitting up. He stuffed his pant legs into his boots and strapped on his swordbelt and quiver. Boadicea deserved a treat, since he'd forgotten last night. She chuffed and knocked her head against his hand, and Link nearly teared up. </p><p>He stroked along her muzzle, and she didn't nip at him. </p><p>Link thanked the stable hand for taking care of her, and left the stable. Rather than sticking directly on the road, Link let Boadicea run through the field right next to it. She went at a canter, and only slowed because Link steadied her. A small island in the river nearby had a shrine, and Link let her roam the hillside while he swam out to it. </p><p>The puzzle inside was fun enough, and only took a couple hours to finish. Boadicea didn't appreciate being sat on while he was soaking wet, nickering and stomping her annoyance. Link sighed and dropped to the ground. </p><p>He really did spoil her. </p><p>Around Mercay Island, Link could see what was once a lizalfos nest, turned into fishing docks. Zora and hylians walked along them, and if he squinted he could see a village on the other side of the island. It was just barely visible from his spot on the road, but there were new wooden houses built on the small islands, zora stonework bridges connecting them. </p><p>The road split, and Link eased Boadicea to a stop. Zora's Domain or Death Mountain. He eyed the tower on the other side of the Zora River and sighed, and turned them towards the wooden, formerly lizalfos nest bridges. </p><p>Boadicea tested the bridge under her before she trusted it, and followed behind Link slowly across it. A few hylians moved out of their way, eyeing the skittish horse. Skittish wasn't the right word, not for Boadicea. Annoyed, maybe. Untrusting, of a path not solid. </p><p>Link looked up at the incline, considering, then let Boadicea graze by the river. He paid a tall zora twenty rupees to keep an eye on her, and started up towards Lanayru Tower. </p><p>The climb was nice, relaxing almost. It started drizzling when he was only halfway up, but he found a few spots that were flat enough to crawl up rather than climb. He was absolutely approaching this from the wrong angle, no doubt there was an easier path. </p><p>But, really, the challenge had always been half the fun. </p><p>Summer months meant more storms, unfortunately, so it wasn't long before Link heard the thunder. He climbed a little quicker, and scaled the tower with practiced ease. </p><p>When it went blue, he put his metal weapons into the sheikah slate, jumped, and hoped for the best. He really needed a piece of topaz jewelry. A circlet would be nice, like his ruby one. Or earrings. </p><p>Boadicea was entirely unimpressed when he found her with the zora. He was easy enough to find, being as tall as he was. Part of the reason Link had singled him out. </p><p>"Apologies for moving her! With the storm out here, I thought it best to move your noble steed to a spot of shelter," he said, voice loud but jovial. It seemed he just spoke that way. Loudly. </p><p>"Thank you for taking care of her," Link nodded to him, and tried to pet her muzzle. She nipped at his fingers, and he drew them back so fast the zora laughed. </p><p>"She certainly has her own personality! Say, I couldn't help but notice how the orange tower in our region has turned blue. I cannot help but wonder how." The zora looked at Link with a mixture of things, not all of which Link could identify. Curiosity, knowing, something akin to joy. Link shifted his weight, not sure how to answer. </p><p>"Well, no matter! We didn't get to formally meet before, so please allow me! I am Sidon, Prince of the Zora. Might I know your name?" The name was familiar, tugging something loose in his mind. </p><p><em> A child, tailfin on his head dragging along the floor. Hands too small to hold a proper spear. Quick to laugh, quick to cry. </em>  </p><p>"Link." </p><p>It occurred to Link, then, that he'd paid a royal prince twenty rupees to watch his horse for an hour. It was, unsurprisingly, <em> mortifying</em>. </p><p>"Well, Link! In celebration of our region's tower turning to blue, please allow me to invite you into the Domain!" Sidon grinned, two rows of sharp teeth on display. Link distantly wondered if they'd grow back if they fell out. </p><p>"Celebration? I, uh, didn't realize that was worth celebrating." Was that a common practice? The rito hadn't seemed to care when the Tabantha and Hebra Towers changed from orange to blue. </p><p>"Of course! Today is a truly joyous day, and we would be honored to have you celebrate it with us! All manner of trout and bass shall be served, with a hylian chef to cook to hylian tastes." Sidon's tone spoke of pride, for his people and kingdom. Link thought about it. </p><p>He'd sort of wanted to check out the hot springs, maybe make some more rupees selling elixirs. The summer heat started to really set in across Hyrule meant that chilly elixirs would be in demand soon. He had plenty of chillshrooms and cold darners left from his stay on Satori Mountain. </p><p>Although, <em> 'all manner of trout and bass' </em> did sound nice. </p><p>"Alright." </p><p>Sidon grinned wider, and told Link more about the Zora Domain while they waited for the storm to pass. Storms in the area blew in, raged something awful, and then swept away like it'd been a drizzle. Link listened as Sidon explained the best ways to catch a fish from the water, though almost none of it would actually help Link, who had no fins or natural talent for swimming. </p><p>When they could, they left their little alcove. Sidon told him to continue down the path towards Zora's Domain, and he would swim ahead to tell his people of the tower. Link knew it wasn't a complete truth, but he mounted Boadicea and followed along the riverbank. They met the path further upstream, and Link followed it around the bend. </p><p>By the Tabahl Woods, Link could see a mostly-finished stable being built. It looked the same as the others, with a zora fence surrounding it. </p><p>"Hello! Welcome to Zora Stable, feel free to use the cooking pot!" A man grinned at him, wearing the outfit of a stable manager. Link nodded, checking out the stable's horse stalls. Even if the likeness of Malanya wasn't quite finished being built on the roof yet, the stalls looked secure and fortified for the area's heavy rains. </p><p>"I'd like to leave her here, just a night and day," Link told him, lips twitching upwards when the man's eyes sparkled. </p><p>"Of course! If I could just get her name, and yours? Ah, I'm the stable manager here, Niko! That'll be twenty rupees, then." </p><p>Link paid him, and gave Boadicea a quick scratch before he went. There were two other stable hands around, one of them gently brushing out a horse's mane. Boadicea would be in good hands. </p><p>He could see why they built their stable where they did. It was open enough to walk the horses if needed. Further down, the path grew steep and slippery. And the bridges. Three long bridges, sturdy and wide, especially the Great Zora Bridge. Generally, though, bridges were a <em> neigh </em> from horses. </p><p>Link smiled to himself. </p><p>It dropped off when he stepped into the main area of the domain, eyes on the statue before him. </p><p>
  <em> Vah Ruta lifts them up. The cut on his arm hadn't been that bad, but he knows Mipha feels better when she can take pain away from others. She always has.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> She’s reminiscing, and her words bring him back to those days. His father used to bring him often to the Zora's Domain, Aryll at home with their Pa. Every trip was another chance for Link to train, and he'd taken to it like a fish to water. Dauntless, he'd never cared about minor hurts.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Mipha had. She'd always pulled him aside and made them go away, warmer, softer than a potion.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Link watches now as the gash closes, as the discolored bruise fades into nothing. Her Touch is a balm, and he selfishly wishes it could heal the hurt inside of him.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "But know this: if you, if anyone ever tries to do you harm, then I will heal you. No matter when, or how bad the wound," she says, and it devastates something quiet inside him. He knows she tries so hard, to assure him and remind him of her care.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He wishes she wouldn't. He wishes that his silence didn't hurt her, because then they both just end up hurting.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Once this whole thing is over, maybe things can go back to how they used to be when we were young." Mipha has always been an optimist. Link remembers them training together with zora spears, and although she never hurt him she also never went easy on him. He remembers long conversations at night, sitting and overlooking the domain.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "You know, perhaps we could spend some time together." On his back, Fi is silent. Link, likewise, doesn't respond. Can't. He would give almost anything, to love Mipha the way she does him. To love her and live with her after, just another retired knight.  </em>
</p><p><em> The sun is setting. It will be time to return to the domain, to Zelda, soon. Duty, his father had so many times said, must come before all. </em> </p><p>It should have been shocking, maybe. With that one memory, so many others scrambled around his mind, flitting in and out of focus. Link only felt numb, staring up at Mipha's statue. He felt less numb, when his eyes met Mipha's. </p><p>He swallowed as she descended the stairs, slowly and then fast, running down the staircase in a way unbefitting of a princess. </p><p>"Link," he heard, and then stumbled back with the force of her. Automatically, his arms came up behind her. It was the first time Link could remember holding her, and yet it was such a familiar, comforting embrace. He felt sharp nails on his back, poking through the fabric of his tunic without quite ripping it. Hopefully. He only had a few. </p><p>"Mipha, I'm sorry," was the first thing out of his mouth. She pulled back, her eyes wet. </p><p>"You've nothing to apologize for, Link. Truly, I am happy to see you." Link nodded, but he still said it again. </p><p>"I'm sorry." </p><p>Mipha smiled, as kindly as Link had just remembered it to be. It felt so fresh but old, this knowledge. Of who she was, how she was. It was something just realized, and yet it felt like a foundational part of his knowledge of the world. </p><p>
  <em> Bokoblins tend to camp together, attack them at night. Never put fish in an elixir. Mipha is unendingly kind.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>King Dorephan paid for Boadicea to stay in the stables for as long as Link remained in the domain. <em> For ending their blight and restoring peace</em>, he'd said and followed up with a much more heartfelt, <em> and bringing my daughter back to me</em>. It made Link feel guilty, because it hadn't been him who'd brought the champions back. </p><p>He hadn't even known about it until months after, had found out in Hateno of all places where no true champion hailed from. </p><p>Link agreed reluctantly, because he wasn't about to stand at a king's dais and argue with him. Mipha's smile spoke of bemused tolerance, but she shot him a smaller, secret smile. Making fun of him, for having to accept a gift. </p><p>There was a hylian woman in one of the open-air rooms of the domain, a few cooking pots and a grill all smoking. Whatever she was cooking, it smelled <em> delicious</em>. Mipha stood outside as he loaded his plate, grilled voltfin trout and spicy seafood stir-fry and salted wild greens. She <em> had </em> said to take all he could eat. </p><p>Mipha had a bowl of voltfin trout stew, and he was almost certain it was raw fish in a broth. It made sense for the zora, but still made his nose crinkle. </p><p>They walked down to the subsection of the domain, Link precariously carrying his dishes down the ladder. A lesser man would have dropped one, perhaps, but Link jumped when he knew it was safe. Not a drop spilt. </p><p>Mipha laughed as she descended just above him, her bowl in hand. </p><p>"It has been so very long since I've seen you so spirited, Link." </p><p>"Yeah, I remember, sort of. I was," he paused, frowning. "Quiet." </p><p>"I know," Mipha smiled, like she'd heard everything he hadn't said. <em> I was frustrated, I was choking, I was trying so, so hard to be worthy of the fate thrust upon me</em>. "I don't mean to pry, but if I may, how much do you remember of one hundred years ago?" </p><p>"I remember... pieces. We trained with spears together, played as children. I went to training when I was. Young." Link sighed, the memories blurred together in places, impossible to place on a timeline. </p><p>"Officially, you began training with the guard at fifteen," she offered, and he listened with rapt attention. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know, but he had to. He <em> had </em> to know. "Unofficially, I believe you were holding swords and pitchforks as soon as you could walk. I remember when your father first brought you here, as a child. </p><p>"Some of our warriors indulged you when you asked to train with them. Even so young, you lasted a great many minutes with the first. He bested you, but only just. The next was a draw, and after that you began winning. At a cost, of course. Oh, you were bleeding from your knuckles and arms," she sighed then, lost in the memory. Link could imagine it, or maybe he was remembering. </p><p>"You healed me. I didn't know zora could do that, and I said, <em> that's so neat</em>," Link laughed at himself, at the strange, awkward child he'd been before going into training. </p><p>"You did indeed." Mipha smiled, gentle and wistful and heartbreakingly sad all at once. </p><p>"I don't remember much of right before the Calamity struck," he admitted. "There are too many holes, I. I remember, me and Zelda were going to go to the Spring of Wisdom, but everything after that is still just. Gone." </p><p>"Perhaps you'd like to try revisiting the spring? You do not have to, of course, but the option is there, should you choose to take it." The words were delicately chosen, a tiptoe around a sore subject. </p><p>"I'm not sure." He shut his eyes and leaned back against the pillar. His food would grow cool if he didn't eat it, so he ate. He couldn't fully appreciate the flavor, with the memories of <em> Zelda, guardians, gold </em> flashing behind his eyes. </p><p>"I'm surprised, you know. That you would come after so long. I suspected that Revali would be the first you saw again." He swallowed mid-chew and almost choked on it. </p><p>"I, ah. I did go to Rito Village, briefly. Revali chose to stay. Is that so strange?" </p><p>Mipha looked at him as though it very much was. He blinked, and she turned her gaze towards her stew. </p><p>"It isn't my place to speak on these things. My apologies." </p><p>Link nodded, even though he didn't understand. Of everything he'd remembered about Revali, nothing in particular indicated they were especially close. Close enough to have been friends, perhaps, though Revali had refused to confirm it. </p><p>The two of them remained below the domain for a long time after they finished eating. The more he spoke with Mipha, the more he remembered about their past together. If any part of Link was the same as it had been one hundred years before, it was that he truly treasured her. </p><p>He treasured her, and wished, desperately, that she loved him less. That he could love her more. Even the him of the present knew that he could see her as nothing more than a close friend, a confidant. And he could see, more and more, the love underlying each kindness she granted him. </p><p>It stung, to be held so dearly. </p><p>Later, despite her words, Link made sure the innkeeper accepted his rupees. He'd already gotten the king to pay for Boadicea's care, he couldn't accept more than that. The guilt ate at him, and the knowledge that the gratitude was misplaced. Whatever Link had done and caused in his life, he hadn't been the one to save the champions. </p><p>That had been Hylia, most likely, or the Sheikah's ancient technology. </p><p>Just before he went to his bed at the inn, he caught Sidon's eye. The prince looked sheepish, perhaps for having invited Link under false pretenses. </p><p>Mipha had told him that Sidon had shown up in a rush, claiming to have invited Link into their domain to celebrate the tower. Technically, the towers around Hyrule turning blue had been cause for their own small, personal celebrations. It meant that Link was out there, doing well. </p><p>So to say that the celebration had been for the tower had been a partial lie. It had been a welcoming for Link. </p><p>Link waved at Sidon, chuckling at the prince's behavior. He probably would have come to the domain if he'd been asked to regularly. Link stared at the faintly glowing blue ceiling and wondered on that thought. Perhaps not, actually. </p><p>He dreamt that night, peaceful. </p><p>
  <em> Link gags over a raw fish, the smell nasty. It smelled like, well. Raw fish. Still flopping around, even bloody, as a zora bit through it with jagged teeth.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He's bleeding, knees and arms scraped and bruised, but he stands again to face the next warrior. If he does well, his father will be happy, impressed. Link is going to be a knight one day, he needs to be strong.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> The taste of mighty porgy does not go well with fresh milk. He eats anyway, because even if Mipha has no practical understanding of hylian taste buds, she'd tried hard to make this meal. The stew is awful, but Mipha's gills flip happily, so he eats.  </em>
</p><p>Link laid there, eyes still closed, and smiled. He held onto the memories as tenderly as he could, even as they faded from behind his lids. It was strange, to have all of these new memories floating around in his head. </p><p>Before he'd come to the domain, he'd had a rough idea of who he might have been once. Now, laying with the afterimages of terrible stew and battered knees fresh on his mind, he wasn't so sure. He couldn't shake the feeling, even as he and Mipha walked around Upland Zora. It was allowed, because technically Mipha could say she was scouting for lizalfos dens or wandering moblins. </p><p>They sat at the top of a hill, facing out towards Akkala. </p><p>"If something has been on your mind, I would listen," Mipha offered, and Link's lips twitched upwards. He huffed a laugh through his nose, and wondered if he was so transparent. </p><p>"It's strange, having all of these new memories so suddenly," he started, and thought of how he was supposed to word this. Link had been honest with the Goddess and the Great Deku Tree. Maybe it was time to be honest with a friend. </p><p>"Everything I'd remembered about myself before now, I was. Quiet. Fine, sullen, whatever," he avoided her knowing look, afraid he'd find piteous understanding in it. "I hated him. Me. Me, before. Everything was always just, so <em> heavy</em>. I had to be the best, <em> always</em>. And I hated who I remembered. That isn't who I am." </p><p>"And now?" </p><p>"And now, I'm realizing that I hated it then too. I was different, before I became a perfect, silent knight. Like I'm different now. The person I remember myself being, that wasn't all of me." Link stared over Akkala, and didn't look over when he heard Mipha draw in a slow, wet breath. </p><p>"No," she agreed. "It wasn't." </p><p> </p><p>Boadicea didn't like the Lanayru region. It was too wet, too mountainous and tree-covered, the paths too narrow and winding. After a week of only being able to walk around the immediate area by the stable, Link took her back to the hills at the mouth of the Zora River. She ran hard up the hills, eager for it. </p><p>Link had to wonder if this was some sort of joke of fate. The horse he'd chosen for himself was just as restless as he was. </p><p>They went all the way back up the path to the Woodland Stable. At that point, Boadicea was trotting happily, energy spent. He brushed her coat and checked her hooves for any damage. A well bred horse needed tending to, but wild ones could go their whole lives without needing to be shored. Boadicea, though, was a wild horse that now carried the added weight of a hylian. </p><p>Satisfied that her hooves were doing well, he gave her a swift carrot and handed her reins to a stable hand. He thought about Mipha, how relaxing the last week had been. It had been nice. </p><p>Link looked to the south, where Hateno sat somewhere, far removed from his view. They'd be harvesting soon, working out under the hot sun. It would be good, too, to see Aryll and his family. He paid the stable manager enough for a night, and went behind the stable to use the sheikah slate. </p><p>He didn't think he'd ever like it, but Link could get used to it. </p><p>The smell of the domain hit him immediately, and he grabbed a couple fleet-lotus seedpods before he stepped out. He walked past Sidon, who startled to see him there. Link felt a little bad, but mostly he found it funny. </p><p>"Link! My friend, I didn't see you there!" </p><p>"Sorry," Link said, unapologetic. Sidon laughed, always good-natured. Every time Link had spoken to the zora, he'd been upbeat, kind. He acted with the proper decorum expected of a prince, but still managed to be friendly. </p><p>Link stood with him for a moment, letting Sidon take on most of the conversation. He never seemed to mind doing so, and although Link spoke freely he did not speak <em> often</em>. Largely because he was so often on the road, and Boadicea was a poor conversational companion. He did like to listen, though, and Sidon gave him enough to listen to. </p><p>When Mipha came, reminding Sidon his patrols had already begun, she laughed as she watched him jump over the side of the domain into the water. Quicker to swim downstream than take the roads, for a zora. Mipha watched him fondly for a moment, and turned to Link with that same joy. </p><p>"Come to say goodbye?" Link opened his mouth, face hot. Mipha laughed and held up a hand. "Don't you forget again, Link, I have known you for many years. I do not know where you'll go, but I can already see that you intend this a goodbye." </p><p>"Yeah, I. Hateno, I'm returning to Hateno. I'm not sure how long I'll be there." Link wondered, not for the first time, how Mipha was able to read him so well. Years of practice, he supposed, at studying a knight who would not speak. </p><p>"That's wonderful," she said, with the tone of voice one would use to say <em> I'm so proud of you</em>. "I regret now that I did not think sooner to ask after your family. I am sorry, Link." </p><p>"Mipha, you don't have anything to apologize for." </p><p>"Nor you. And yet, here we are." </p><p>It was a marvel, how Mipha managed to deliver soft-spoken words like sucker-punches. Link could only nod, throat too tight to respond. </p><p> </p><p>Goponga Village was doing well, a bustling fishing village that also seemed to be an epicenter for travel. Link could see why, set on a lake right between the Zora's Domain and Hyrule Field. Of the several buildings he could see from the road, he wouldn't be surprised if a good deal of them were businesses. </p><p>He didn't bother stopping at the Wetland Stable, though he could see that it was doing well for itself too. Link did stop to let Boadicea graze a while after passing it, let her drink from the Hylia River. He gazed across the bank, his skin crawling. </p><p>There was a copse of trees up the hill, though he couldn't see much of it. He'd been there, though, could already feel dread pooling in his gut. He took a steadying breath and shut his eyes, not sure he'd even want to know it. </p><p>
  <em> They're running, until they're not. Zelda slips, and Link kneels before her to make sure she's alright.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Of course she isn't. Neither is he, but he has to be, doesn't he?  </em>
</p><p><em> "Everything I've done until now, it's been for nothing! All of them, they're dead, I </em> left them <em> to die. I tried, and tried, and tried, and failed, time and time again! So I really am just a failure."  </em></p><p>
  <em> They're Zelda's words, Zelda's tears, but they're Link's too. He feels them rip through him and leave him battered, breathless with the weight of all of it. The guilt, anger, disappointment, all of it directed at himself.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Zelda cries against him, and he offers her whatever strength he has left. He puts his hands on her shoulders, and doesn't pray. Prayers haven't gotten either of them anywhere. Zelda's skin is cold under him, both of them drenched from the downpour, caked in mud.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> She's cold where her nose buries into his neck. She's cold where his hands rest on her back. Shivering with it, with the pain and the sobs. Link holds her against him like something precious, because she is, she is all that he has left. Duty, his father had raised him saying, time and time again, must come before all.  </em>
</p><p><em> Duty is now all that Link has left, cold in his hands. Duty, and the heat behind his eyes. </em> </p><p>Link blinked up at the woods, eyes stinging. Boadicea chuffed, nuzzled her head against his chest and blew warm air across it. He turned from the bank to face her, and scratched along her chin. </p><p>"Good girl," he smiled, shaky. "Good girl. That's right. They're all alive, huh? Yeah." </p><p>Link had been wrong. Boadicea turned out to be a wonderful conversational companion. He mounted her again, and set her off on a slow trot. The path forked ahead, and Link veered to left, up the hill. He was pretty sure either road would lead him to Hateno anyway, at some point. He really didn't care at the moment. </p><p>The road was new, the dirt and rocks laid out and pressed far more recently than the main trail. Link let himself focus on Boadicea instead, on the steady rhythm of her movements. It was relaxing, and Link slipped into it, let time pass in a way he didn't need to think about. He was aware enough to detect an enemy, and that was good enough. </p><p>The road came to an older section, set between two large cliffs. There was an archway he vaguely recognized, but couldn’t place where he'd seen it. He came up to another one, arch formed by a wooden banister crafted into the cliffs. And, ah. </p><p>Beyond it, Kakariko Village. </p><p>Link did vaguely remember climbing a steep hillside with Zelda, after Calamity Ganon's defeat. He hadn't recognized it because a new path had been laid out there, and he wasn't exhausted and confused this time around. </p><p>Just, tired and speculative. An improvement, he would argue. </p><p>He considered, very briefly, just staying on Boadicea and walking along the trail until he left the village. It wouldn't take long, and there was a good chance no one remembered a man covered in mud escorting the lost princess a year ago. </p><p>Link sighed and dismounted, and led her to a fence he could tether her to. The villagers ignored him for the most part, and Link appreciated it. Perhaps he didn't have to greet Impa after all, just another traveler passing through. </p><p>He dismissed the thought as easily the second time as he had the first. </p><p>The two guards at the bottom of the stairs stopped him, and Link almost didn't know what to do. Impa's granddaughter, Paya, he thought, spotted him from the porch. Link could feel his ears go warm from embarrassment, whether for himself or her he didn't know. </p><p>"Master Link!" Paya called, then yelped as she stumbled in her rush to get down the stairs. It really was a long staircase. The guards moved aside, clearly deeming him not a foe. "Master Link! Oh, Goddess, Master Link, hello!" Paya stopped a few stairs up, stuttering her words out from nerves. He wished he knew how to put her at ease, but that was more Mipha's skill than his. </p><p>"Hello. I came to greet Impa." The guards bristled at the impolite address, but Paya only nodded. He followed her back up the stairs, grateful she didn't trip on any again. Impa sat inside, and Paya only stayed long enough to bow to her before rushing up the stairs. </p><p>"Don't stand all the way over there, then, come on over here," Impa motioned, and so he did. Link kept himself from shifting his weight, but only just. Impa stared at him like she could see through him, pull him apart and see what mettle he was made of. </p><p>"You know, you've done things quite backwards, I think. Woke up and immediately went to face Calamity Ganon, then disappeared into the wilds, started activating the ancient towers and shrines. Ah, I shouldn't be surprised, I suppose." </p><p>Link didn't know what to say in the face of that, so he said nothing. He didn't know whether to be indignant or abashed by her words. </p><p>"You've indulged yourself a long time before coming to see an old woman, Link. Barely stayed long enough to say hello, last I saw you." </p><p>"Sorry." He offered no excuse, though there were several bubbling up in his mind. At the end of the day, though, she was right. He'd fled almost the moment he'd arrived. </p><p>"Pah! None of that! You've never apologized for something that isn't your fault, so don't you start now. You think I spent the last hundred years in a box? I can see well enough. You look better now." Link nodded, and walked closer to her when beckoned. </p><p>Impa held out an old, shaky hand, and Link gave her his. Her hands were cool and wrinkled, skin thin like paper. Her grip was strong and sure, though, and she gave his hand a squeeze that threatened to bruise. </p><p>"You've done so much, Link. Far more than anyone so young should have to. The battle is won now, you're allowed to rest. Spend the rest of your life getting fat and old, so that when you die it's surrounded by family." Impa's tone was teasing, but her eyes were serious. Her hands squeezed around his once more before letting go, and Link actively did not rub them. </p><p>"I am glad you've come, Link. Don't make me wait another hundred years to see you, hear?" </p><p>"I hear," Link smiled. Then, "I'm glad I came, too." He would absolutely never tell her he'd wandered in by accident. </p><p>Link went to the general goods store, and eyed the bokoblin guts with curiosity. Well, he supposed the Sheikah had once been great warriors and inventors. He bought some goat butter for cooking and wandered out. </p><p>The village was quiet and peaceful, and he could see many travelers walking the streets. The people kept to themselves, but were friendly when approached. It was nice. He felt a little silly, for having avoided this place for so long, just another village. </p><p>When he'd come, he'd been sore and weary, ready to drop at any given moment. Zelda had spent the last few days trying to jog his memory, asking leading questions that he couldn't follow. Every time he failed a test from her, her expression would shutter and twist. Each time, the sorrow was replaced by frustration, little by little. </p><p>Link still wasn't sure he'd pass whatever strange tests she gave him. He'd recovered a fair bit of his memories, but it wasn't a lifetime. </p><p>He remembered that she had once been cold to him, and that she'd once been friendly. How they maneuvered from point A to B was still largely a mystery to him. But maybe, he thought, they'd be able to map out new points some day. </p><p>Link untacked Boadicea and led her through the village. He got distracted a few times, and ended up buying an embarrassing amount of fortified pumpkins. The man had looked at him strangely, eyeing his horse and lack of cart. Link had never wanted to laugh in someone's face more, at the man's expression when he saw the sheikah slate absorb a dozen pumpkins. </p><p>The sun was low enough in the sky that Link figured he may as well stay the night in an inn rather than ride for a couple hours and camp outside. He tacked Boadicea outside it, and laid down some feed for her to eat through the night. The bedsheets were thick, and he ended up falling asleep with a leg poking out into the fresh air, but it was nice. </p><p>He dreamt something familiar, the scenery a little more whole. </p><p>
  <em> The wildberries are freshly picked, tangy and surprisingly juicy. There's a caw of laughter, a tease about how hylians are just bipedal retrievers. The wind is still blowing in from the opening on the launchpad, the rest of the window curtains drawn to keep in some warmth. Link doesn't mind it, tart wildberries on his tongue and a spicy elixir flavored with peppers in his belly.  </em>
</p><p><em> He's tempted to check on the nutcake again, but doesn't dare after having his hand smacked last time. He looks up at the figure in front of him, and has to hold back a smile at the- </em> </p><p>Link snapped awake to the sound of a crash. His hand was on his sword before he was fully cognizant of it, eyes sweeping the room for a threat. </p><p>Instead, he found Paya, picking up a basket of fruit. </p><p>"Master Link! I'm so sorry for waking you, I was just bringing this in so you'd get it before you left," she stuttered over more than a couple words, and Link immediately sheathed his blade. He set it aside and walked to her slowly, hands extended for the basket. </p><p>"Thank you for this," he nodded, and hoped she could hear the sincerity. It was very kind to offer him food for the road, and he appreciated it. Paya nodded furiously, face a bright pink. </p><p>"Of course! Safe travels!" </p><p>He looked down at the fruit, apples, swift and even a couple endura carrots, a couple hearty radishes. He put them into his slate, and set about getting ready to leave. It didn't take long, considering how little he carried. </p><p>Boadicea followed the path out of the village, though couldn't travel too fast. The path was walled in by the cliff mountain sides all the way to Kakariko Bridge. Boadicea's steps were steady as they crossed it, even though Link could tell she was stressed. He gave her a soothing pat when after they crossed, and let her run off some of the energy. </p><p>Ash Swamp was a ways below them, and the houses on Blatchery Plain seemed to be thriving. Link thought there might be one or two more, but he couldn't be sure. He could see new fencing, hateno cows and goats penned up. </p><p>The guardians at the old walls of Fort Hateno had been cleared. The tops of it had been rebuilt, sturdy and wide enough for a patrol to walk it if necessary. Fresh, young grass grew in patches around it, strange dots in the field from where the guardians must have been moved months ago. </p><p>Something settled in Link's chest, seeing it all. New homes, new grass, new life ready to spring up where death and ash and malice had once been. Another reminder, that it would continue to persevere. Link leaned forward and scratched Boadicea's neck, a small smile on his lips. </p><p>They went at a slow, steady pace. Eventually, though, he stopped to let her graze in a large plain. Link walked around it, collecting hyrule herbs and mushrooms and restless crickets. The occasional group of chuchus sprung up, startling and easy enough to kill. He lost track of time, wandering Ovli Plain. Boadicea made her way to the lake to drink, and he eyed the setting sun. </p><p>It would be possible to make it to Hateno before it got too dark. Not easy, but he could make it if they rushed. </p><p>Instead, Link got out his bedroll and set it down far enough from the water to not drown in mud. He felt too restless to really sleep, but satisfied too. Like he wanted to run, climb a steep cliff, soar from the peak, and do it all over again. </p><p>He lit a fire and cooked a couple hyrule bass over it. Snacked on wildberries while it cooked. </p><p>Link could have gone the rest of his night feeling that way, restless with too much energy and content with it. Boadicea snorted, ears alert. Link held back a sigh and reached for his fish gutting knife, the rest of his weapons in the slate. </p><p>He'd expected a few keeslings, maybe a stal monster. What he got was three bandits, holding unkempt blades. It would have been laughable, how easy it was to disarm them, if he couldn't smell his fish burning. Boadicea scared one of them more than Link did, nearly stomping on the man when he reached for her reins. </p><p>"Get out of here. Don't do it again," Link warned, all of their weapons in a little pile by his fire. They ran off, towards Ginner Woods. He sighed, a deep, unhappy sound, and turned away from them. </p><p>Both of his fish were charred. </p><p> </p><p>Leon and Arie spotted Link almost the moment he arrived in the village. They left the other children they were playing with to run to him, and Link felt the easy smile on his face grow. He bent down to hug them, laughed when their tiny arms squeezed like a vice. </p><p>"Uncle Link! You're back!" </p><p>"Did you see any neat bugs?" </p><p>"Did you see any cuccos?"</p><p>"Cuccos? Who cares about cuccos, go look at your own! Did you see a lynel? Or a bear?" </p><p>Link kept up with the questions as best he could, and let them pull him by a hand through town. Boadicea nipped at Leon when he tried to pet her, but it was more a threat than a bite. Link patted her neck, which she tolerated. He figured she didn't like the attention from strangers, or maybe just children. </p><p>Several people greeted Link as they made their way down the road, and Link waved back. Already, Link felt more settled in his skin than he had in months. He'd found small joys wherever he'd gone, sure, but Hateno Village held something dear to him. The village itself, too, was something precious. </p><p>He left Boadicea in a little stall by Bolson's buildings, the bridge too dangerous for him to even consider bringing her across. </p><p>Aryll and Vae were out by the apple tree, Smith just barely visible, crouched down by the garden. Link smiled wide, bent over to give each of the women a hug. It had only been a matter of months, three or four or five, but it felt like so <em> long</em>. </p><p>"Well, look at who finally decided to come home. Letters aren't enough to replace that silly face," Aryll smiled. </p><p>"I'm home." If he sounded a little raspy, none of them mentioned it. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>the goddess and great deku tree both mention that the link's of the past have had similar issues with getting their footing after ganon's defeat, and honestly i'm not sure that's true? i haven't actually played a ton of zelda games before, definitely not to completion haha. idk, i tagged this as playing fast and loose with zelda lore for a reason </p><p>and we are in hateno village again! link went to visit mipha and got childhood memories back! how fun! sidon definitely felt very guilty for tricking link into visiting the domain, and he personally went to deliver the rupees to the stable to pay for link's horse every morning.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Summers in Hateno Village were different to winters. Link sold chilly elixirs to the farmers who spent most of their day in the fields, even if some of them griped that he was practically giving them away. The village's blacksmith, a man named Oric who seemed to know more about everyone and everything than even the two gossipy ladies, sold Link a small pot he could bring on his travels. </p><p>Oric made a face when Link told him he'd only need the one. </p><p>"So yer just gonna cook up those elixirs in with yer food, huh?" </p><p>"Yep." </p><p>Link had never minded, and the residue from monster parts only ever needed a little rinse to wash out. Oric looked a little green at the idea, and Link tried not to look like he found it nearly as funny as he did. Outside the smithy, though, he let himself laugh a little. </p><p>It took a week or so to find time to get down to Kitano Village, which had established another couple houses. There was a market along the beach, shaded by palm fruit trees and a long canvas attached halfway up the trunks. They sold fish, fruit, mushrooms, and arrows. </p><p>Hylda had a little bundle in her arms when she greeted Link. He stared at the baby's little face, its ears too long for its head. So <em> tiny</em>. </p><p>"You wanna hold her? Her name's Kelli." </p><p>Link swallowed when she was placed in his arms. He didn't even remember extending them, but they wrapped around Kelli, brought her close to his chest. She didn't even twitch, fast asleep. She couldn't be more than twenty pounds, but Link felt every ounce of her weight. </p><p>His hands had been used to kill so much. Toughened from childhood to be the strongest, fastest, a perfect knight. Muscles built and honed to strike, slash, guard, parry. </p><p>Link held the babe, heart climbing up his throat and beating against the backs of his eyes. His hands could be used for gentler things, now. </p><p>"Thank you," he told Hylda, solemn. She smiled at him and said nothing, and taught him how to rock Kelli. </p><p>He made it down whenever he could, both because he liked those who'd made a home of Kitano Bay and because he always glided down. </p><p>With Boadicea, he felt a little strange about leaving her to graze alone or, worse, stuck at a stable while he climbed the nearest tall mountain. Riding her across fields and plains was freeing, set something loose in his chest. But it wasn't the same as flying. </p><p>In the air, Link felt more at home than any hylian had any right to. His lips chapped and his eyes stung from the wind, and he couldn't be happier. The ache in his knuckles was welcome, a stretch in his arms he couldn't get from anything else. It had been a while, since he'd gotten to fly down on his paraglider so regularly. </p><p>There was something nostalgic about it, too. An attachment to the paraglider that had to have been borne before he saw the old man, old king, using it. His fingers slotted perfectly into the grooves, made long before the spirit had ever touched it. </p><p>He stood on the hilltops, looking up at the sky, and felt let himself truly wonder on it for the first time. He'd had passing thoughts and speculations, but had never truly allowed himself to follow the thin strand in his mind. He watched a cloud roll through the sky, and let the memory tug itself forward. </p><p>
  <em> Link looks at the rito in front of him, and allows the little scrunch of confusion on his brow. It's just the two of them at the range.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "What, you can't truly expect to defeat Calamity Ganon if you're limited to the ground, can you? I can't imagine why the Goddess chose a hylian of all things as her little knight." He isn't meeting Link's eye, feathers drawn back and flattened on his head.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He's embarrassed, and it twitches a ghost of a smile onto his lips.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Thank you," Link tells him, hushed. He looks as pleased as he always does when Link speaks to him, the same preening bob of his head that he gets when he's perfectly fired every arrow in his quiver.  </em>
</p><p><em> "Well of course, how else would I show you that I'm the true master of the skies? You have much to learn from me, you know. And don't you go losing it, either! You won't get another one." </em> </p><p>Link blinked the blurriness from his eyes, felt the warmth roll down his temple. The clouds breezed on, steadily moving, drifting apart and together. He wondered, then, how many new facets of himself he would discover. A stony knight by necessity, how soft had he been inside that shell? </p><p>He sat up and curled his knees towards his chest, feeling suddenly like a turtle with its underbelly exposed. </p><p>Gave himself just a few minutes to compose himself, then slotted his fingers into old grooves. He'd promised he'd teach Gino, one of the Kitano Village children, how to catch a beetle without it flying away. Boadicea stood at the top of the hill and watched him glide down with little interest. On the beach, he whistled, high and shrill. </p><p>She galloped down the road to him. Whinnied and knocked her head against him, happy. He fed her a swift carrot, and ignored how Jenni teased him about spoiling his horse. Link knew fully well he did, and he'd do it anyway. </p><p>Gino bound up to him, eyes wide and pleading, and Link let Boadicea wander the grassy areas away from the beach. He had bugs to catch. </p><p>Link was happy to listen to Gino's enthusiasm, even if he had trouble keeping up with the various changes in topic. They walked from tree to tree, looking for beetles. Gino even kept his voice at a constant whisper, to not scare off any that might be nearby. </p><p>"And then they said that they really did see her! I don't know if I believe it though, if there was someone living up there they'd have to come into town, right?" Gino was talking about the two people who live in the old lighthouse. </p><p>Link had heard a little about them, but he'd never been up the hill himself. According to the villagers, they almost never left. Deliveries were made and left outside, milk and meat and things. He'd helped bring an order of firewood up the hill once, but he'd waited around for a few minutes and no one had come for it. It was the norm, apparently. </p><p>Gino quieted and pointed up at a tree trunk. A bladed rhino beetle sat on a tree trunk, stretching its wings. Link nodded at the boy, and crouched down. Somewhat exaggerated, Link crept forward, slowly, slowly. He caught the beetle in a flourish, and showed Gino. </p><p>"Cool! So cool! Catch another!" </p><p>Link smiled and handed him the beetle, and spotted another one further into the woods. He ended up catching all of the beetles, Gino only watching and scream-whispering after each one. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon, especially under the shade of the trees. </p><p>His father was suitably impressed when Link brought Gino back for dinner. He looked tired enough to sleep for a week. Still awake enough to wrangle a promise out of Link that they'd catch beetles again sometime, though. </p><p>Gino and Leon would make fast friends. He'd have to remember to bring Leon and Arie down to Kitano sometime. It wasn't a far trip, though difficult for any of their guardians to walk down with them. They'd both have fun, and Link wanted to give them that. He already knew a good time for it. </p><p>Most people didn't celebrate birthdays, especially since it could be so difficult to keep track of them in smaller villages. Those kinds of things were usually for noble-born families. While technically he and Aryll were children of a royal knight, their birthdays had never been cause for personal celebration. </p><p>They'd been born near the same time, and their celebrations had been lumped together when they were young. He didn't really remember them, but Aryll ended up telling him about it. </p><p>"Oh, Father was always insisting on it," she sighed, nose scrunched slightly like it had when they'd been kids. "To be honest, I'd never cared either way. But, for you, it always seemed like another reminder that you were growing up. He loved us, in his own way, but he treated us like tiny adults. </p><p>"Always pushed you too hard, I thought. Every year, instead of a celebration like some others got, he put you through a full day of bonus-training. If you did it perfectly, you'd get, oh I don't know. A dagger, one year. A new training knife, a heavier weighted sword, a new bow."</p><p>"And you?" </p><p>"Hm. I got fruit pie, usually." </p><p>Link couldn't say he was surprised. He'd known already that his life had revolved around becoming a knight. </p><p>"I remember... enjoying it. The pride, when I won, when I did good. The only time I think he ever looked proud was after I did something, something <em> spectacular</em>. Beating soldiers and all that." Link's voice was quieter than it needed to be. Smith slept like a lynel, snores filling the home. He didn't know how the rest of them slept so soundly, but everyone was used to noise. </p><p>"I wouldn't say that," Aryll smiled, soft and distant and fond. "I remember, a week before you left for training, you jumped off the cliff with our strongest cucco. That thing carried you all the way down to Old Man Daryl's down by the Fir! Damn near gave Pa a heart attack, but Dad only laughed. Just asked you when you got back, <em> you have fun? </em> You smiled big, real happy." </p><p>"Tell me more?" </p><p>Aryll smiled, and poured them both another cup of hot tea. Link listened to each story of their childhood, sometimes with memories washing over him, replaying alongside her words. Sometimes Link remembered nothing, but tried to commit her retelling to memory. </p><p>"I still remember your first letters about the champions, too. Got 'em somewhere in here, but you know how it is. Boxes get put on boxes and moved around so damn much, can't tell where anything went. Ah, but I remember how you described them, powerful and impressive and kind, mostly. I remember thinking, if Link thinks so then they must be so." </p><p>There's none of the bitterness Link might expect. The champions had, ultimately, fallen. No matter how powerful and impressive and mostly kind they'd been, Calamity had still come and ravaged Hyrule for a hundred years. And Aryll had watched it all, one of the few people alive that still remembered a time before Calamity. </p><p>But she still spoke of them with fondness, nostalgia. There was old humor in her tone, pulling at the corners of her lips. </p><p>"Of all of them, you were most intimidated by Lady Urbosa, even into wearing gerudo vai clothing into her city. Didn't learn what that meant until years later, you rascal. Said you got along best with Daruk, that he liked to watch it when you'd cook for them some nights, even if he only ever ate rock. If any champion could ever get you to crack a smile, it was Mipha. Once, you lamented how she made a joke about some Buzz from the Domain, right in the middle of an official meeting, and you had to recount all our old hens to keep from laughing." Bazz, Link remembered, was the leader of the Big Bad Bazz Brigade. Link had trained him when they'd been young, but Bazz had been the one to lead the little group of wayward adventurers around the domain. They’d reconnected somewhat, the week Link had spent in the Domain. </p><p>"And Revali?" Aryll had mentioned all but him, and Link was curious. Aryll glanced at him, humming. </p><p>"At first, you said he was the most infuriating person you'd ever met. Brilliant, dedicated, but arrogant. You said, you just wanted to get by, guard the princess. Duty talk, the usual. When the champions had to meet, which was more often than I would've thought it'd be, you always had something to say about the rito champion. Really, I should've known from the start," Aryll laughed into her cup, and Link cocked his head, confused. </p><p>"Known what?" </p><p>Aryll looked at him for a long moment, then sighed. </p><p>"You know what, you should look for those letters. They're in some little chest under the stairwell, but I wasn't joking about losing them. Who knows, maybe you'll remember something from reading 'em." </p><p>Link didn't mention that he was pretty sure he knew which chest she meant. </p><p>Aryll went to bed shortly after, and Link made his way down to the inn. There, at least, he didn't have to suffer Smith's snoring. Link thought about the offer, the letters, the chest that he'd accidentally opened looking for dried hylian shrooms. </p><p>He dreamt, and managed to remember at least half of it come morning. </p><p>
  <em> There's barely been a moment for privacy. Between keeping up with his training and keeping up with Zelda, there hasn't been an opportunity to write home. He wishes he could see Aryll, tell her and Pa using actual words.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He doesn't know if he'd even be able to, if they walked into the inn right now. Doesn't know if he'd be able to hug Aryll without tensing. But he can write to her, so he does. She and Pa are all he has left now, and the loss of their father is still a gaping hole inside him. He'd fallen in battle, serving the crown as was his duty. A group of moblins, seven of them, two silver. The things normally travel in smaller numbers, with bokoblins or lizalfos.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Link shoves the thought aside and dips the fountain pen into ink. He'll have to get another little jar of it soon. Between letters home and his reports, it's become a precious commodity. He can't stop himself from writing, though.  </em>
</p><p>He couldn't recall the actual words on the page, but he had a feeling he knew when it had been. A month or so before Zelda's seventeenth birthday, the champions had all gathered together. It really wasn't an unusual occurrence. Their bonds had to be strong with each other, as well as their Divine Beasts. </p><p>He also remembered, inexplicably, his father's last words to him. </p><p><em> Remember your duty, son, perform it well. And should you fall, let it not be by a blade. </em> </p><p>Link rose from the bed, head still foggy from the dream. A walk would be good. He went to Boadicea and gave her a bit of fresh feed, patting her twice before continuing down the road. His feet went automatically, and his mind wandered elsewhere. </p><p>He enjoyed the stretch in his calves as he walked up inclines and hills. It was a steady ache that grounded him, let him focus on something other than half-fuzzy dreams and dead fathers. The view was always beautiful in Hateno, especially the sunrise coming over the peaks of Walnot Mountain. </p><p>Before Link fully realized, he was by the old lighthouse. A blue fire burned, similar to the lanterns burning around Hateno. Whoever lived here, whatever they did, Link knew it was somehow related to the old sheikah technology. Especially given the giant telescope pointed towards the west. </p><p>Link turned to go back down the hill, but heard a crash come from inside. He burst in, concerned, and saw a young girl covered in books. A man stood by a bookshelf, not even glancing her way. </p><p>"I almost had it! Hey, what are you doing in here?" She asked, picking herself up. Link blinked, eyes catching on the messy desk behind her. He figured he knew how the books had fallen. </p><p>"I heard a crash." </p><p>"Very thoughtful of you, but I'm quite fine. Since you're here, help pick these up huh? Who are you anyway?" Link crouched to start stacking the books. Instead of helping, the girl moved around the desk to start shuffling through papers. Which, alright. </p><p>"Link." </p><p>The girl looked up and stared at him, and Link ignored it in favor of the books. He wasn't particularly a fan of them, but he was even less-so of being watched. He glanced at the man, still examining his bookshelf. They both looked like sheikah. </p><p>"Hmm... Link, you say? Ah, Linky it really is you! Mind if I take a look at that slate? Thanks. Wow, look at this thing! Here, give me just a second and I'll get this updated for you. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself! I'm the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab's distinguished director, Purah!" </p><p>Link looked at her, and didn't respond. She set the slate in a pedestal like the ones in shrines and on towers, and the same stone glowed atop it. </p><p>"Linky, what's with that look? You do remember me, right? I'm the one who took you to the Shrine of Resurrection one hundred years ago, you know? Hmm, interesting," she pulled out a notebook and pen, mumbling under her breath as she wrote. </p><p>"I remember some things, but, uh," he trailed off. She nodded anyway, continuing her notes. Link wasn't sure how she could've been alive one hundred years ago. She looked less than ten. </p><p>"Ah-ah, I know what you're thinking! You don't even have to say it! Feel free to read some of my old notes upstairs, but I actually look this way due to a failed experiment. Actually, on second thought, it's rather embarrassing so I'd ask you to refrain from reading through that." </p><p>Link nodded. </p><p>"Ah, lookie here! The guidance stone has completed its data download, here you go. If you look at the new rune, you'll find the camera feature has been added! And the compendium, which should register images automatically and provide useful information. Don't look so hesitant, Linky! Take a look for yourself. Incredible, isn't it?" </p><p>Link activated the rune and looked at it. It did seem impressive. </p><p>"Oh! One more thing! If you happen across any ancient materials, do bring them either here or to Robbie at the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab. If you do, we can make the runes in your slate even stronger! Oh, and if you don't mind, could you head to the other four towers? You <em> allllmoooost </em> have all of them, but it would be really useful if we could access them all. No rush of course, Linky!" </p><p>"Useful?" It was the first word he could cut in since she started talking. And, Goddess, she spoke <em> fast</em>. </p><p>"Yes! See, your slate is the only one we truly have left of the ancient sheikah technology, so it's the only one that can activate the shrines and towers. The slates I can make can use them, but only the activated ones. See, I have one, as well as Robbie and Queen Zelda. Neat, isn't it?" </p><p>Purah pulled out a slate similar to his, but a little smaller. Perhaps because she was so young. Or, not young but not old either? </p><p>"Neat," he agreed. </p><p>Purah turned back to her work, muttering about a particular book she needed to find. Link watched her dig through the stacks he'd made on the desk, restacking them all in haphazard piles. The man by the bookcase caught his eye and side. </p><p>"Yes, the director is always this way." </p><p>Link looked at his bookcase, the neat little desk in the corner. He eyed the chalk lines on the floor. Ah. </p><p> </p><p>The first thing Link took a picture out was, unsurprisingly, Boadicea. She was due for a good run, so they galloped down the path towards Kitano Village. It was nice out, not too humid and muggy even with the summer heat. They steered a little off the path towards a pond, water flowing down from Retsam Forest. </p><p>"Atta girl, Bo," Link grinned, and dismounted to let her drink. He sat on a nearby rock, taller than Boadicea. The camera rune was easy enough to figure out, and Link pointed the slate down at her, head bowed towards the pond. </p><p>It registered her as 'Horse' in the compendium, which was interesting to say the least. </p><p>
  <em> These can most often be found on plains. Their usefulness as transportation has made them valuable since ancient times. That said, wild horses do tend to get spooked and run off when approached, so if you're looking to snag one, it's best to sneak up on it.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Common Locations: Hyrule Field, Faron Grasslands </em>
</p><p><em> Recoverable Materials: None. </em> </p><p>Interesting. </p><p>Link looked around for something else to take a picture of, and zoomed close on a hot-footed frog. He spotted a warm darner flying over the water, and a restless cricket in the grass. Boadicea grazed by the pond, probably glad for the shade under the trees. </p><p>Later, when Link climbed back up the hill on a back path and stabled Boadicea by the house, Aryll would ask what had taken him so long. He absolutely didn't tell her that he'd spent a full afternoon taking pictures of critters. She might be over a hundred, but she still teased like a little sister. </p><p> </p><p>Leon and Arie, like Link and Aryll, had birthdays within the same week, so they celebrated them together, Leon turning fourteen and Arie nine. Aryll and Smith and Vae made the day special for them both, with fruitcake and a few small trinkets each year. They weren't expected to do anything, and had a free day from their chores. </p><p>It made Link smile, to see them enjoy their childhoods. His and Aryll's hadn't been so relaxing, and she'd worked hard in life to give her child and great-grandchildren better. Her granddaughter, Flavia, had no doubt had equally happy years. </p><p>They spent the day together, the five of them. Leon got a new pair of boots, technically an old pair of Smith's but new to him. Arie's gift was fabric for a pretty bow, since she'd said recently she wanted to learn sewing from Vae, who'd been a seamstress until her hands got too shaky and her eyes too old. </p><p>After their cake, Link offered to take them down to Kitano. Both of them bustled around the house, pulling on boots and hats and grabbing little satchels. The two raced down, and Link jogged behind them. Surprisingly, neither tripped in their haste, which he'd honestly expected. </p><p>They combed the beach together, running on wet sand and kicking water at each other. Neither noticed when Link snuck a picture of them with the slate, the second after Boadicea. Well, second that he'd kept. </p><p>Link bought some shock arrows from the market, apparently shipped up from Lurelin. Jenni told him that they traded via boat more often than not, and while they'd always had a connection to Hateno Village via the sea, ships came much more frequently than before. It made Link smile, a little bittersweet, to picture Lurelin Village as a bustling hub of trade. </p><p>The people were kind, and deserved the rupees it would bring them. </p><p>Still, Lurelin had been a place of healing for him. The village had brought him restful nights, a full belly. Friends, neighbors that checked on him and made sure he slept out of the rain. The satchel at his waist felt heavier, and he took out his snail and seashell to look at. Rubbed his thumb over the worn shells, and breathed a little easier. </p><p>Lurelin was still there, if a little more bustling than before. Rozel with his legends, Kiana with her old recipes, Garini and his fascination with ancient times and the shrine. </p><p>Leon and Arie ran up to them, both with their hands behind their backs. </p><p>"We know it's our day to celebrate, but we found these," Leon grinned, and elbowed his sister. </p><p>"We picked them up for you, Uncle Link." Together, they displayed their gifts. Crusted in sand, a large shark tooth and a grey chunk of rock with some sort of impression on it, a swirling pattern. He accepted both, careful with Arie's sharp tooth. </p><p>"Thank you," Link smiled, and slipped the little treasures into the pouch with the shells. He would need a larger pouch, if children kept gifting him such precious things. </p><p>With the sun beginning to dip lower, Link got them started back up the road. It would just be dusk by the time they made it back to the house. Both kids seemed tired from the excitement of the day, though Leon was faring better than his sister, who looked almost dead on her feet. </p><p>Link offered to carry her up, and Aria didn't even try to refuse. He felt her even breaths on his collar not even five steps after he got her situated. Leon smiled up at him, quieter than he normally was. </p><p>"Today was really fun, Uncle Link." </p><p>"That's good. You should enjoy birthday celebrations, they're meant to be fun." Both of them kept their voices low, Link especially since he was right by Arie's ears. Just barely, they could hear the bay not far below. </p><p>"Gran-gran says so too," Leon nodded, oddly determined. "When I get older, I'm gonna take Arie on trips like this, so she enjoys our birthday celebration. She already does, but when she gets older she says she wants to travel. Since I'm her big brother, I gotta go with her to keep her safe." </p><p>It was strange, to see so much of himself in a boy more than a hundred years younger than himself. He'd had such a similar notion, that he had to be strong, had to be the best. Leon continued speaking, even more hushed. </p><p>"You're the real knight of legends, you know? I gotta be strong enough to protect Arie. What kind of descendent am I if I can't protect my own sister?" Link stopped in the path and put a hand on Leon's shoulder. The boy met his eyes, guarded but oozing deprecation. </p><p>"If you want to be strong, I'll help you. But I want you to understand that sometimes, you fail. You fail, and you can't help that. No amount of being the best, the strongest, will ever stop it. You can train all your life for something, and you still might fail." Leon dropped his gaze, clearly unenthused by the pep-talk. Granted, it was terrible, Link had always been awful at them. </p><p>"The most important thing is what you do after you fail, Leon. You have to learn how to continue. If you want to train, train. If you want to become strong, work for it. But you have to remember that failing doesn't make you a failure." </p><p>Leon stared up at him through his lashes, blue peeking through feathered blond. He was so much like Link that it hurt, tore open old wounds and left them bleeding. </p><p>"But you didn't fail, you beat Calamity Ganon. You're <em> the </em> strongest." </p><p>"I wasn't always, kid," Link told him, which might have been a lie but felt very much like the truth. "And I did fail, a lot. Plenty of times, big and small." He'd defeated Calamity Ganon a hundred years after he'd died trying the first time around, not that his great-grandnephew needed to know the particulars. </p><p>"Let's get your sister into bed, huh?" </p><p>He didn't know if his awful pep-talk had helped Leon any, but he didn't look down at least. He seemed content, satisfied with the encouragement. That was good enough, Link supposed. Everyone was already asleep by the time they got back, and Link snuffed the lantern as Leon got settled, Arie already tucked in. </p><p>"Goodnight Uncle Link. And thanks." </p><p>"No problem." </p><p>He heard Leon's soft snores not long after and huffed a laugh. Kid was exhausted. Link stood in the dark house, moonlight creeping in through the windows. He thought of a conversation held weeks ago now, surrounded by the same snores. Link lit a small candle and walked to the staircase. It took a bit of shuffling, but he found the right little chest. </p><p>He took it with him, so he could sort through it in the inn. It was light enough anyway, and he was sure Aryll wouldn't mind. Prima gave him a tired wave, and he returned it as well as he could as he sat on his bed. Link opened the chest at the small table by the bed and leafed through the papers, all thin and fragile with age. </p><p>They were all short, penned with a hasty hand and the knowledge that he was always running low on paper and ink. Link pulled one out when he noticed Revali's name. He might read the other letters too, one day, but he was most curious about this. Two people, now, had more or less told Link to get his head on right when it came to the rito. Mipha, and then Aryll. </p><p>
  <em> Aryll,  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> You'll be glad to know that Mipha agrees with you, on the matter you told me to ask about. I don't understand either of you. You would choose salmon meuniere over a nice meat curry, truly? I'm beginning to suspect you're a switchling. What a shame, my sister is out there somewhere being raised by forest children.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> The champions have all gathered, this time as guests in the castle. It is... uncomfortable. I'm used to being scrutinized, but it's worse with them. Well, one. I don't get what Revali's problem with me is! The moment we met, he already had an opinion on me. I guess most people do too, but it still bothers me.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Urbosa gave him shit today, you should've seen it. I've never seen a rito puff up from embarrassment like that. Did you know all of their feathers can ruffle? I wish I knew what she'd said to make him do that, then I might actually try talking to him. </em>
</p><p><em> I hope you're doing well. Don't make Pa do any heavy lifting, hear? </em> <em> The old man's getting up there in years. </em> <em> He's perfectly healthy, of course, but you should still carry stuff. Heavy stuff. I'll write again when I can.  </em></p><p><em> Your favorite brother, Link </em> </p><p>Link turned to another, and, huh. Aryll hadn't been joking about him writing about Revali a fair bit. </p><p><em> We're at Rito Village again. Princess Zelda has been </em> <strike><em> cranky harsh loud</em></strike>  <em> alright, all things considered. She </em> <em> r<strike>uns away whenever she can </strike></em> <em> seems to be handling responsibility well. I believe in her, though. And should her powers never awaken, I will still stand between her and Calamity as my duty to the crown dictates.  </em></p><p>
  <em> Princess Zelda left to have a meeting with Elder Lorelei earlier, and I went to the flight range. I still don't know why I bother. Revali was as rude and belittling as always. He seems to hate me, specifically. He doesn't quite get along with the princess and champions, but he doesn't call them flightless disgraces with no talent for the bow, either.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I caught sight of him after dinner, though. Tending to a hatchling in the healing roost. The child had an injured wing, I think? Revali looked almost tender, caring for them. Gross. Never tell anyone I said that, Aryll.  </em>
</p><p>Another.</p><p>
  <em> We've just arrived at Deya Village, so I was able to restock on ink. You wouldn't believe how many reports I have to send in. They're always the same anyway. It's just a reminder, maybe, that I have to train harder so I can report better results. Constantly thinking about improving.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I was on one of the hills over Deya, and Revali of all people came to bring me dinner. Stayed out too late training, blah, you know. He just shoved it at me, said I need to eat if I want to play at being the chosen knight. I really don't get him?  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Anyway, I'm having a courier bring a small parcel to you. Enjoy! And please don't dull it down. Happy birthday. </em>
</p><p>Link remembered it, more vivid as he continued reading. It had been a fine dagger, weighted well and encrusted in opal on the pommel. Link had seen it on the bookshelf in the main room, old but cared for. He picked up the next page, a brief one.</p><p><em> I don't know if you know this, Aryll, but Death Mountain is very hot. Very, very hot. I had to walk all the way down the mountain so the paper wouldn't go up in flames to write out a report, and this too. This is going to have to be short, but I couldn't help but write. It's been months, and I know you worry. I'm doing well. The princess, I think, has gotten used to me? She doesn't run off anymore, at least. Until next time. </em> </p><p>They'd gone to check on Daruk's progress with Vah Rudania. Daruk had offered to give Link a hearty rock roast, and Link had taken a bite. Or tried to. It had been the first time Zelda laughed at him, openly and freely. </p><p>
  <em> We're all gathered in Akkala. Princess Zelda went to the Spring of Power, and the champions came for moral support. We're all good friends, I believe. Don't look so shocked, little sister, your face will get stuck like that.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I know this will come to you rather suddenly, but Revali is... not as bad as I thought. We exchanged a few cordial letters, between the last time I was in Rito Village and now. Just, keeping you up to date like you asked. </em>
</p><p><em> Nothing special is really happening here. I'll try to come and see you for our celebration next year. Also, Mipha says hello. </em> </p><p>Link remembered writing that one. He hadn't told Aryll nearly the half of it. He remembered the day, the… just, everything, the <em> muchness </em> of it. </p><p>
  <em> Akkala is never a fun place to be, in Link's opinion. The citadel is just uphill of the Akkala Stable, meaning some of Link's old superiors caught wind quick of the princess staying there. Meaning, of course, that they'd been formally invited to stay.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> The place makes his skin crawl. He remembers being newly fifteen, officially old enough to rise in ranks. It was unprecedented, or it had been before Link. The youngest person ever promoted to royal guard had been a few years shy of thirty. It was really only by technicality that Link had been allowed into their ranks at all.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> 'And any member recruited into the Hyrulean militia may, upon coming of age at fifteen, be promoted to the rank deemed fit for their skill level.' Fancy way of saying, if they're young enough to join but with no skill, to infantry they go. Link had been young, but he'd always been gifted. Before he'd come of age, he'd been training.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Usually, it wasn't allowed. Was unheard of. But Link had accompanied his father to the training grounds since he was twelve. He'd bested knights and members of the royal guard in duels, and had run their most advanced training grounds by fourteen.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Most of the soldiers here remember that. A puny kid had bested them, and they hate him for it.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> If Zelda or the champions notice the occasional sneer thrown their way in the halls, none make mention of it. Zelda might not even notice, since the soldiers are careful to be out of her line of sight. Link walks a perfect two and a half steps behind her, posture impeccable, gaze straight forward.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> They're all given rooms, bunking together. Urbosa, Mipha, and Zelda at her own insistence that she doesn't need a room alone, and then Link, Daruk, and Revali. Usually when they travel Daruk sleeps outside, but maybe he hadn't wanted to insist? Link doesn't know. He remains at attention as the soldiers watch them enter.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "So how is it being the princess's chosen knight? Everything you dreamed?" Link doesn't answer the soldier. Doesn't look at him.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Don't bother, Nhit. Ol' Link's too good to talk to the likes of us, huh?" Same response. He hears them scoff and shuffle out, only bowing out so soon because of the presence of the other two champions. Link walks to his bed, steps measured to marching perfection because if he just doesn't give a single vulnerability away, their words will mean nothing.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "You, uh, you always get the cold boulder like that, little guy?" Daruk sounds worried and hesitant, like he'll drop it at the slightest indication Link won't answer. So he doesn't. He sits on his bed to unlace his boots, and refuses to look at either of them.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Well, you may have no issue with such behavior but that doesn't make it any less unbecoming! Truly, how you continue to stand there like you can't hear as well as speak is beyond me. Didn't they get their chance in the running of becoming the princess's knight? Truly disgraceful."  </em>
</p><p><em> Link blinks up at Revali. It's the first time he's seen the rito mad for him instead of at him. It feels... nice, almost. Link slides under the sheets and doesn't answer, but his muscles are marginally less tense than they'd been. </em> </p><p>The letter after that shocked Link. It was about another trip to Rito Village. He and Zelda had gone from champion to champion for nearly a year, constantly en route to the next until they started over again. It had been a way for Zelda to escape the castle and study the Divine Beasts at the same time, and, well. </p><p>Link had preferred the constant travel to staying in the castle, where men twice his age with half his skill scorned him. </p><p>
  <em> Aryll,  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I've stared at this page for a while now. I'm not sure how to explain this, really. Zelda and I have come to Rito Village again. You might remember, I mentioned an infrequent correspondence with Revali. I may have purposefully excluded some details. Sorry about that.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He's asked me to be his intended, set to officially begin after the fight with Calamity Ganon. I have agreed. I didn't mean to keep this from you for so long, truly. I hope you and Pa will think the same of me, now.  </em>
</p><p><em> If not, well, you'll always be my favorite little sister, switchling or no. I've included a few wildberries, which should still be good by the time this crow gets to you. The ones here in Tabantha are sweetest. Hopefully it hasn't eaten them, and if it has I'll get you more. </em> </p><p>Link blinked down at the page, as if it would provide him more insight. This seemed rather sudden, didn't it? He looked at the other letters, but most of them were about the other champions, and one almost solely about Epona. </p><p>Link of the past did not pop out of the page with a detailed explanation of how this came to be. More frustratingly, Link only got vague notions in his memories. It was the truth, and he knew it was, he just didn't <em> remember </em> it. </p><p>A letter mentioning Urbosa stared up at him. </p><p>
  <em> She acts as a mother of sorts to us all. Except Daruk, who has taken us under his care in much the same way. I think you'd like her, and she'd get a kick out of you. Goddess, I can imagine it. You two would make my life insufferable, you know?  </em>
</p><p><em> Gerudo Town is nice, honestly. I don't even really mind the traditional vai outfit Urbosa got me. There's a jeweler here who makes beautiful wares. A courier should bring a set of ruby anklets and bracelets sometime within the next few weeks. Wear them when you tend to the cuccos in the winter to stay warm. </em> </p><p>Link shut the box and snuffed the lantern. He was curious, now, about his relationships with the champions. It had to have been more than a year and a half now, and he'd only been to see two of them. Being with both had recovered a fair bit of his memories too, though Mipha moreso given their childhood friendship. </p><p>The summer heat was receding at night, a sign that autumn would arrive within the coming months. The desert would be burning hot regardless, and Link had a fair amount of chilly elixirs. He could still do with some more. </p><p><em> Tomorrow</em>, he thought, <em> I'll get started on them tomorrow. </em> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>bit shorter than the other chapters, but not the shortest of all of them! sorry about that haha :^)  this chapter was mostly focused around link's memories, but hopefully it was still a nice read? </p><p>oh, and uh. surprise! when link asked revali to travel with him and he said <em>what an interesting proposal</em> he uh... wasn't joking, huh? </p><p>anyway :^) can't wait to meet urbosa! i love her!</p><p>(and because i didn't do this when flavia was introduced and she got a lil mention: in pictura est puella nomine cornelia.... etiam in pictura est altera puella, nomine flavia. a true classic, ecce)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>